Shadowed Path
by Lady Black Mage
Summary: He is chosen to lead Mumm-Ra's army after Grune's death. But Axis is not his uncle. He longs for freedom, and the call of Thundera haunts his dreams. WARNING: OC use, mild OCxCC, language, and violence. Status: On Indefinite Hiatus [until muse returns.]
1. Prologue: The Turning Point

A/N: I do NOT own any part of Thundercats (2011). Credit for that genius goes to Warner Bros. I do however, own the few OCs that appear in this prologue. This is a companion story to my other current TC fanfic, "Mortal Bonds," and just as with that story, any OCs appearing in Shadowed Path will be accredited to their individual creators in each copy of each of these chapters as they appear listed in my deviantArt gallery. Enjoy the beginning, and R&R please!

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><p><span>Prologue: The Turning Point<span>

The sun was setting just on the horizon, casting a violet glow over the city of Thundera, nearly concealing the flush of excitement that lit the faces of the young captains, so recently returned from another battle won. The younger soldiers under their command were already beginning to disperse into the city, each to their own pursuits, and the two captains were no different.

"Oh, before I forget, Grune," Panthro said, turning to his friend with an eager grin, "Some of the lieutenants have arranged for a homecoming party later tonight, down at Jagendi's tavern. You wanna come?"

Grune paused, slowing his pace as he regarded his friend, hesitant to decline, but hesitant also to agree.

"You don't _have_ to come, you know." Panthro added, seeing his uncertainty.

"No, it's not that," Grune said with a weak chuckle, "You go on ahead, I'll catch up with you later."

He pulled away at that point, resuming his brisk pace and heading toward one of the higher avenues in the city.

"Where are you going?" the question called up after him.

"To see Muaraine!" he shouted back, "She'll kill me if I don't stop by to show her I'm not dead!"

"Your sister would kill you even if you _were_ dead!" Panthro yelled, prompting him to chuckle. His path took him past several humble dwellings, the smithy, the tanner, the apothecary…until at last he came to his sister's home at the end of the avenue, built against the high shoulder of a stone wall erected to prevent citizens from falling a good twenty feet into the street below. As he drew closer, the heavy aroma of baked goods reached his nose, making his mouth water. He carefully rapped on the door with his knuckles, remembering the last time when he'd been yelled at for splintering the wooden frame.

"Hold on just a moment!" a voice edged with borderline panic called from within. A few seconds later there was a soft thump, the sound of desperate scrambling, and the door swung inward, revealing a young female saber-toothed cat. She blinked up at Grune with eyes the same shade of caramel as his own, and frowned.

"Oh, it's just you. And here you got my hopes up, thinking Damo had come home early." she grumbled.

"Really now, sis," Grune pleaded, putting on his most charming smile, "Where's your sense of family compassion?"  
>Her frown deepened to a glare, but she opened the door all the way and allowed him to enter, spinning on her heel as she returned her attention to her baking.<p>

"I swear, between you and Damorn, I'll have gray in my hair by the time I've reached my forties," she grumbled.

"Now surely your husband isn't _that_ worrisome," Grune said dismissively, hovering over her shoulder, "What kind of pie is that?"

Muaraine bared her teeth, smacking his shoulder roughly. "Keep your filthy paws to yourself! Gods know when you last had a decent washing!"

Grune snorted. "You have no faith in me. Are you really going to let your only brother starve?"

She gave him another pointed glare, but shoved a meat pie at him nonetheless, indicating for him to sit at the weathered wooden table in the center of the room. He offered her another grin in return and took a seat, gingerly touching the edges of the pie so as not to burn himself.

"Don't see why you're leeching off me when you're just going to run out and go drinking with the other soldiers later." Muaraine muttered, setting a few other pies out to cool before sitting across from him.

"Whoever said I was going to?" he cocked an eyebrow at her before nibbling at the pie crust.

"You always do." She replied. "I don't think you should bother; after all, aren't you and Panthro supposed to return to training the princes tomorrow morning?"

"Got it in one. Prince Tygra is progressing nicely; I think that boy's going to be the best swordsman any of us has ever laid eyes on, once he's grown up. Prince Lion-O, on the other hand…" Grune paused and shook his head. "Well, I won't declare him hopeless yet, but the cub would rather spend his time daydreaming about technology."

Muaraine smiled. "Cubs will be cubs. You know…"

"Not forever," he said quickly, not realizing he had cut her off, "One day the boy's going to grow up and hopefully by then he'll have his head on his shoulders right. Perhaps he and Tygra will each serve as generals one day, too."

"You've already made general?" she asked in surprise. He shook his head and swallowed a bite before answering.

"Not yet. But the last I heard from Claudus as we were getting back this morning, he's planning on…making a 'very special announcement' tomorrow during the prince's training." Grune couldn't stop his face from breaking into a triumphant grin, and Muaraine's eyes widened.

"Brother, this is wonderful! You and Panthro both making general!"

"Not yet," he chuckled, "But the second I do, you and Damorn are both invited to the celebrations!"

She smiled, then glanced down, her expression growing somewhat awkward.

"What's wrong, Muaraine?"

"Well…" she said slowly, "Damo and I have decided that we're going to try…we're going to try for a cub."

Grune's eyes widened in surprise, then crinkled with delighted laughter. "Damo's finally warmed up to the idea of becoming a family man? Sister, this is fantastic!" He gave a whooping laugh and swept her up in an enormous hug. "General _and_ uncle! I doubt Panthro will be able to say he's ever been so honored!"

"Ease up, you big brute!" she laughed back, "I'm delicate!"

"That's what all the men used to say before you'd break their arms. Muaraine, don't you see? We _should _celebrate! This is a turning point in both our lives! A critical axis! Our parents would be so proud!"

"We can celebrate later, after King Claudus's announcement." She said with a smile. "In the meantime, you get back to your friends and tankards. I'm going to wait for Damo so he and I can…ahh…"

Grune gave a snicker and set his sister down. "Alright, alright, I get the idea." He snatched up the remainder of the pie and headed for the door. "A critical axis, Muaraine! And one day, with any luck, I'll be ruling and you and Damorn will be living like royalty!"

"Keep dreaming, brother!" she called after him as he walked off, "And if you don't tell me the second you're made a general, I'll bust your kneecaps!"

Grune chuckled to himself as he headed for Jagendi's tavern, allowing his own daydreams to surface for once, as he envisioned Claudus naming he and Panthro generals the following morning.

* * *

><p>Claudus took in a breath, not completely meeting the eyes of either of them. "I've chosen Lynx-O to be the general of the army."<p>

The words slammed into Grune with the force of a battering ram as his jaw slowly dropped. "…Lynx-O has less experience than _either_ of us!" he barely managed to say the words clearly through his shock, fighting to keep himself from shaking with unhinged rage.

"I know," Claudus admitted, "Which is why I'm keeping the two of you together for a much greater task." He drew from his belt a scroll, stained from time and lack of use, carefully unrolling the ends to reveal the painting within.

"The Book of Omens."

The name hung on the air like an ominous cloud, bringing with it that hush of reverence that it always inspired.

"I believe it is more than just a legend. And if anyone can find it, it's you two." Claudus declared, his blue eyes passing from Panthro's crimson ones to meet the caramel orbs of Grune. The saber-tooth cat went rigid and averted his gaze, stifling a growl that was building in his throat. Did Claudus know…?

"Our role," Panthro spoke up, stepping forward and bowing formally, "Is not to question, my king."

Grune barely heard him above the sound of his world shattering.

How could he face his sister now…?

* * *

><p>They had stopped keeping track of the passage of time long ago.<p>

How long had it been since they left Thundera? Weeks? Months? Years? He was willing to bet it was the latter. They had already endured two harsh winters and two sweltering summers. Panthro continued to insist it was merely the different climates all around Third Earth, but Grune knew better.

Just like he knew better about why Claudus had sent them on this wild myth chase.

Then one day they arrived at a small, wayside village, barely a proper town, and stopped to rest and replenish their supplies. Normally he would have been glad of a chance to sit on a proper chair and drink ale again, but Grune had been keeping his thoughts to himself of late, and made no sign of relief or gratitude.

"Hey, just got word from the smithy here." Panthro said softly, pulling up a chair and sitting beside his friend. "Two years."

Grune exhaled, his expression deepening to a scowl as he looked away and began to nurse the tankard he'd been served.

"Grune, it's not so bad."

The saber-tooth said nothing, his jaw tightening in anger. The panther saw the warning sign and immediately fell quiet, the silence spreading between them all through their small meal.

Soon a runner entered the village, passing by the tavern, laden with a heavy shoulder satchel that was full to bursting with letters. Grune glanced up absentmindedly. The young cat messenger had obviously come a good distance, and wore the official seal of Thundera, a sign he was delivering only to other cats in the area.

"Sorry, excuse me!" he yelped, elbowing his way through a small gaggle of chattering people. "Official business for Thundera, you know. Any Thunderans nearby?"

Neither Grune or Panthro knew who pointed at them, but the next moment, the young messenger was facing them, breathing hard from exertion, and asking their names.

"Whoa, slow down there, kid!" Panthro said, motioning for the server to brink a glass of water. "The world's not going to end just because you can't deliver all those messages at once."

"N-names, p-please." The messenger stammered, nodding his thanks to the waitress for the water. "I may yet have something in here for you."

"Captains Panthro and Grune of the royal Thunderan army."

The younger cat gave a quick nod and proceeded to dig through his satchel.

"I doubt there's going to be anything." Grune said sourly. "Honestly, Panthro, do you think anyone even remembers us?"

"Don't talk so negative, Grune." Panthro said firmly. "Are you forgetting the send-off we received when we left?"  
>Oh, he hadn't forgotten. "Did the fact that we've been gone over two years leave your brain as soon as you told me?"<p>

"You act like that's a lifetime."

"I think that's the intent." The saber-tooth said quietly.

"What?" Panthro asked abruptly, looking at him in confusion.

"AHA!" the runner cried. "_Here's_ something!"

He drew a long, folded parchment out of the satchel in triumph and thrust it at Grune, who recoiled in mild shock.

"What?"

"For you, Captain Grune!" the young cat declared proudly, squinting at the name and seal on the parchment. "From a Muaraine—"

He ripped the letter from the messenger's hand immediately, surging up from his chair and walking away to read it in private. Panthro yelled after him, no doubt irritated with his behavior, but at that point it didn't matter; the world fell away as he tore open the letter from his sister.

_Brother,_

_I'm not sure how to tell you this but..._

_Sometime after you left, Damo was elevated to captain, serving under General Lynx-O._

_A few weeks ago a messenger came by the house with a black envelope._

_Brother, I don't know what to do. I'm so lost without my Damo…_

He sucked in a breath. Damorn had died? Then Muaraine was all by herself in that house. How could this have happened? The paper crackled threateningly as his hands shook, fighting the urge to crumple the letter in his hands.

This _wouldn't_ have happened if _he_ had been made general.

The world around him seemed to grow a touch darker, and it was only through an effort of will that he was able to force his eyes back to the letter, and read the rest.

_I do have a tiny bit of good news. I went to the clerics recently, and it has been confirmed that I am with child. A little over three months along, so I am searching for a midwife and working on a set of infant's clothes._

_Damo will live on through our child, at the very least. Your niece or nephew, brother._

_I have already selected the name if my baby is a daughter, but without Damo, I am at a loss as to what I should name a son._

Grune's eyes scanned that line again and again.

_I am at a loss as to what I should name a son._

He heard without hearing, his sister's plea. She needed a name for a son.

"Excuse me!"

The young cat messenger was back, standing at his shoulder, his face a mix of anxiety and determination.

"Sir, I really must object—"

But his mind was already reeling back, back to the last time he had seen Muaraine, back to the discussion they had in her home. And his own words returned to him with stark clarity.

_"This is a turning point in both our lives! A critical axis!" _

He had already given Muaraine her son's name.

"Do you have any writing implements on you?" he murmured.

"—And furthermore—er. What did you say?" the messenger paused, thrown off.

"Do you have something I can write with?" Grune demanded, spinning round and seizing the younger cat by the material of his sleeve.

"Yike! W-watch it!" he yelped, fumbling in his tunic for something. "H-here!"

A pen was shoved into Grune's hand and he immediately scrawled one word at the bottom of the letter.

_Axis._

"Here!" He snapped, refolding the letter and smashing the seal back in place. "Return this to its sender."

"But sir!"

"Just do it," he groaned, waving the younger cat off as he pushed the letter into the reluctant hands. The messenger gave him a sidelong glance, then turned and left. Grune sighed, rubbing his temples wearily.

"Okay, now what the heck was that about?" Panthro demanded.

He didn't answer. He couldn't.

A turning point indeed! If only he had known just how pathetic his own life would wind up after saying those words. If only he had known the tragedy that would befall his only sister. It was a change for both of them…for the worse.

Much later that night, when Grune laid down to sleep, his last waking thought was of his sister, the sight of her watching at her window, waiting for a husband who would never return. And as he drifted off, another image entered his dreams: a vast structure that rose to a sharp peak, shielded from mortal eyes by a huge, cyclonic sandstorm.

This marked yet another turning point.

A critical axis.


	2. Chapter 1: Louder Than Thunder

A/N: Thanks for the patience, everyone. I'm sorry this chapter turned out to be so short, but it wasn't exactly the easiest thing to write. Also, the title of the chapter is actually named after the song "Louder Than Thunder" by the band The Devil Wears Prada. I had that song on repeat towards the end of the chapter, and it actually helped me with writing this. (Mind you, I was pretty much just scribing the scene I saw playing out in my head by that point.) Still, please R&R!

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><p><span>Chapter 1: Louder Than Thunder<span>

Brilliant golden rays of sunlight washed over the city's cobblestone roads, warming the ground underfoot and giving the inhabitants a light-hearted spring to their steps. A crisp, cool breeze whistled through the city, a refreshing breath of air, and in a small, tumbledown house on the end of a high avenue, a single mother breathed in deeply, feeling somewhere inside her heart that today was going to bring a great change with it.

She frowned, chewing her lower lip nervously as she sat patching clothes at her table. The thrill of impending change was mingling with a strange, misplaced anxiety, one she couldn't fully explain. Her hands moved deftly with the needle, diving in and out, up and down, putting the final touches on a patch as she let her mind wander.

Muaraine had never put much stock in what her brother called "gut feelings", and somehow she didn't quite believe that was what this apprehension was. No, it was women's intuition, it had to be. Her sixth sense didn't always kick in so strongly, but it was never unfounded and rarely inaccurate.

She had just finished with the patch and was moving onto the next article of clothing that needed attention, when a small, fuzzy head poked above the edge of the table.

"What are you doing, Mama?" the saber-tooth kitten asked, his large blue eyes staring up at her curiously. The corners of Muaraine's mouth turned up and she reached out, gently stroking back her son's wild, sand-colored hair.

"Just making some patches, dearheart," she murmured.

"Oh." he said, his expression unreadable as he looked at laundry on the table.

"Why are you back so soon?" she asked kindly. "I thought you had gone outside to play with Servali and your friends."

"Servali got in a fight with Ryland again, so everybody had t' go home." he said in a pout, his ears twitching slightly in annoyance as he did his best to scowl. Muaraine fought to keep a straight face as she watched him.

It had been eight and a half years since her brother had been sent with Panthro to find the Book of Omens. And it had been a little over six and a half years since Damorn had been killed in action. Yet as bleak as life seemed to turn, fate had given her the most beautiful gift in the world for her suffering.

"Chin up, Axis, my little love," she chuckled, vainly trying to smooth his hair again, "That's not so bad. This means you get to try a special treat since you're home early. It's a new recipe that Tifran gave me."

His blue eyes went bright and his ears pricked up. "A treat?"

"Yes," she replied, rising from her chair and holding out a hand for him, "Kora berry cookies."

A grin split his face as he grabbed her hand, practically charging to get to the kitchen. "Kora berries? I wanna help make it!"

She smiled warmly, genuinely, and sent a silent prayer of thanks toward the heavens, to whatever deity was listening, for her son.

* * *

><p>The horn's long, low tone reverberated through the very ground of the city, the subtle ambiance unbalancing many of the citizens. It wasn't, however, a tone of alarm; the sound was signaling the approach of someone or something outside the gates of the city. Muaraine glanced up briefly from setting aside the remaining kora berries and frowned, the faint sensation of prickling intuition brushing her subconscious. Axis paused as well, looking toward the window, his ears twitching as he listened.<p>

"What is it, Mama?" he asked quietly.

"The guards are just alerting the king that the city has visitors," she answered with a weak smile, putting an arm around him for comfort, "There is nothing to worry about."

"Promise?" he asked, turning his large eyes up at her.

"I promise." she replied.

The rest of the afternoon passed in a pleasant haze as the two played together and it was just after sunset, as Muaraine was laying Axis down to sleep, that a knock came on her door. Surprised, she tucked the covers tightly around her son and answered the door quietly, seeing a few of her neighbors looking at her, their faces caught between excitement and something she couldn't quite identify.

"What—"

"Muaraine, aren't you coming?" one of them asked before she could form her question.

"To what?"

" 'To what?' Muar, we thought you would have been the first to know!" said another.

"Know?" she parroted, furrowing her brow.

"Muaraine, Grune's back!" said the third.

"Grune?" the name escaped her lips in a disbelieving gasp. "My brother?" she asked to confirm, unsure of whether or not she was dreaming. Her visitors nodded.

"He arrived just this afternoon from his travels, hauling treasure! The king is holding a celebration! Aren't you going to come?"

The sounds around her began to fade away and her limbs felt as though they had been filled with stones, threatening to drag her to the ground as a strange void enveloped her mind, numbing her thoughts. Her brother, finally returning from his quest triumphant? No, it was too good to be true. Perhaps the facts had gotten skewed in the excitement of the telling. Surely it was Panthro who had returned, and her brother might or might not have been with him. Yes, that had to be it.

"Muaraine?" someone was saying, concerned. She blinked, seeing her neighbors outside her door once again, and cast her eyes down.

"Sorry, but no." she murmured. "I cannot come. I just laid Axis down to sleep."

"Are you sure?" one of the other cats asked hesitantly, and she offered them all a sad smile.

"I'm positive. But I thank you. I am…sure that Grune and I will have another chance for a reunion, one where he can meet his nephew while Axis is awake."

And with that, she bid them goodbye, shut the door, and walked back to her son's bedside, stroking his flyaway hair as he slept.

"Besides," she whispered aloud, "If what they say is true, then Grune will come to see us the instant he has a free moment. After all…he's my brother. He would never abandon me."

But Grune did not come.

Not once that night did he appear, nor did he come by the next day. When Muaraine spoke to passersby on the street in the late morning, there was talk of the king tying up all of Grune's time, due to some riot involving the princes, a small mob, and a pair of lizard criminals late the previous night. The news wasn't surprising, not really, and as the morning continued into the afternoon, she sustained herself on the knowledge that her brother would finally come when he had a free moment. But then the afternoon bled into the evening, and it brought the city's alarm with it.

This time, no neighbors stopped by her house, and she refused to set foot outside of it.

"Mama…? What's happening…?"

She found Axis curled in a ball under her bed, whimpering in fear and covering his ears. Sitting on her knees, she carefully pulled him out and brought him into her lap.

"Shh, darling," she whispered, hugging him tightly, "There is nothing to worry about."

He shivered and gave a squeaking hiccough as he clung to her, ears flattening as far as they could against his head to block out the noise.

"Everything will be alright. Your uncle is going to come and find us, and protect us from whatever is happening. And until then, I'll protect you."

She didn't believe the words even as they left her mouth, but it was a tiny relief to feel her son's small frame stop shaking. For a long time they simply sat there, not truly hearing the sounds outside as Muaraine gently rocked her cub back and forth.

Suddenly there was an eerie, unsettling silence, as though the entire city had simply ceased to have a voice. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and her intuition began to prickle at the back of her mind. And then came the explosions, a great many booming roars that shook and rattled Thundera at its edges. Fear blossomed inside Muaraine, and she knew she had to get them both out, that she had to run, to move, to _escape_. Surging to her feet, she carried Axis out to the kitchen, ducking under the table as something crashed down into the room behind them. The cub let out a terrified shriek, clinging to her desperately as she stared, barely processing that debris from the explosions almost killed them, had she not moved.

"Mama, what's happening?" he cried again, more terrified this time around. She gathered him into her arms, clinging to him tightly and doing her best to shield him with her larger form.

"It's going to be alright," she whispered, as much to herself as to him, "Your uncle will come and find us. He'll come back, like he promised, and we'll be safe."

The words were a poor attempt at reassurance, but she kept repeating them nonetheless, renewing her efforts with each explosion.

"Promise?" Axis whispered.

"I promise," she repeated automatically, quietly fearing what would happen if she couldn't keep her word to him.

* * *

><p>After a time, there fell another relative silence. Muaraine had no idea how long they had hidden beneath the table, but it seemed an eternity had passed. Finally, she risked a chance and emerged, sharply ordering Axis to stay put. The kitten complied, his wide, terrified eyes remaining fixed on her as she tentatively started to move about their home, inspecting fallen debris. At first, it seemed a twisted calm after the explosions had come upon them.<p>

Then they heard the footsteps.

It was impossible to guess how many lizards there were, but the leathery sound of their bare feet hitting the cobblestones was unmistakable. Muaraine froze where she stood. It couldn't be…there was no possible way…

Doors began to slam, things began to break all up and down the street as the lizards yelled at one another. Muaraine spun back toward the table, reaching for her son, when her own door cracked, the splintering wood flung inside as the lizards forced their way inside. Her head turned, caramel eyes just making contact with one of them as he leveled a weapon.

"Filthy cat." he hissed.

Her heart thudded wildly as his weapon gave a loud hum.

A vaguely familiar voice gave a shout of alarm somewhere outside, the words muffled.

The weapon hummed louder.

"Mama!" Axis cried.

She turned back to him, as fast as she could bring herself to move, feeling for all the world slower than molasses as she flung an arm out for her child.

The lizard's weapon fired.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Muaraine's body jerked, convulsing with each shot as the blasts from the firearm lifted her feet from the ground, time slowing down.

The weapon fired a fourth time.

A fifth.

A sixth.

A seventh.

The force began to push her back toward the far wall, a bit at a time, her back arching with the shots, her hand still reaching forward, her pain-filled eyes locked with her son's horror-stricken ones.

She was dead before her body thudded to the floor.

Axis was unable to believe what was happening. His eyes saw all of it, and yet something in his mind couldn't—_wouldn't_—accept what he had just seen. He didn't worry about being good and obedient any more, and scrambled out from under the table.

"MAMA!" he screamed, his voice high and ragged as he ran to her. His mother didn't respond. She lay in a crumpled heap, her hands going cold, her eyes open and empty, staring at nothing. Horror built inside Axis, a fear that became overwhelming when he heard the lizard with the weapon speak again.

"Disgusting creatures."

Axis looked up, paralyzed by utter terror as the weapon hummed loudly once more, leveled this time at his eyes. Instinct had him moving automatically, his right hand shooting up to shield his face as he flinched back.

Then there was a horrible, burning, stinging pain that stabbed through the back of his hand as the weapon fired. A primal scream of fear and agony tore itself from his throat. His arm began to shake violently and his hand hurt, hurt worse than anything he'd ever felt before.

Suddenly there was a furious roar, nothing like the thunderous explosions of earlier. It was much more raw, and somehow softer, yet more furious and savage.

"Get that gun away from my nephew, you stupid reptile!"

Axis continued to shake and began to cry softly, tears pouring from his eyes as he kept his hand raised.

"Axis?" said the voice, gentler now by a fraction, "Come here, my nephew."

"M-mama…" he choked out.

There was a pause, then a yelp of pain and a crashing sound.

"I'll deal with you later." the voice promised as Axis saw through his tears the lizard sink to the floor. And then a second later, a pair of strong arms lifted him up.

"Axis, it's alright." the voice said in a strained tone, "I've got you. Uncle Grune's got you now."

Axis lowered his hand, still burning with stabbing, stinging pain, and looked into a pair of eyes the same shade of caramel as his mother's. He choked on a sob and buried his face into the big cat's armored chest, crying quietly until he fell unconscious.


	3. Chapter 2: The Face Of Fear

Sorry about the wait for this chapter, you guys! Please remember this is a companion story to my other current TC fanfic, "Mortal Bonds," and just as with that story, any OCs appearing in Shadowed Path will be accredited to their individual creators in each copy of each of these chapters as they appear listed in my deviantArt gallery. R&R please!

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><p><span>Chapter 2: The Face of Fear<span>

He was in a nightmare. A really bad nightmare. What else could it be? He had heard things exploding, smelled things burning, felt the ground shaking, seen his mother…had seen his mother killed.

That's why it was a nightmare. His mother was so strong and brave, and had always protected him. Nothing could ever kill his mother; she would stare it in the eye and scare it away. She had always promised she would never let anything hurt him, and she always kept her promises.

Something cold and wet slapped him awake, and he woke with the burning smell still filling his nose. A pair of caramel eyes was watching him from above, and for a second, he was easily able to believe his own fearful lies.

"He barely seems lucid, General. Perhaps I could try again with—"

"Get out of the way you fool."

There was a loud punch and a clatter somewhere beyond his vision as the world came into clearer focus, and Axis realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach that the caramel eyes were framed in bearded face.

"Axis, can you hear me?" the big cat asked, brows furrowing in concern.

"It's not a dream…?" he murmured. He blinked hard a few times, reached up to rub his eyes—

And a scorching pain exploded in the back of his right hand.

He gave a small yelp, stifling his would-be sobs into a whimper as his arm began to shake. He sat bolt upright, blinking back tears as he held his arm tightly to his chest.

"Hurts…" he managed to squeak.

"Let me see that." came the gentle command, tugging his hand away from him and holding it out level. Axis glanced up, watching those caramel eyes narrow in a dark frown. "We'll be able to put something on this to help it heal, but it looks like you may wind up with a scar on that hand."  
>He didn't really care at that moment about scars. He may not be dreaming, but this was still a nightmare. He was just living in it now. Tears began to trickle down his face despite his efforts not to cry, and he choked on a sob.<p>

"Mama's really gone, isn't she?" he whispered.

There was a tense pause, and finally the answer came. "Yes. Your mother is gone, Axis. But I'm here to take care of you now. I'm your uncle, Grune."

He didn't care. His mother was gone and he would never see her again. She would never give him a bath, or scold him when he disobeyed, or praise him when he did good, or teach him things, or tell him stories, or hold him in her arms and call him her little love, not ever again.

The world around him grew a touch darker, and he suddenly felt cold all over and inside, shivering. He wanted desperately to cry, to just cry as long and as hard as he could, but strangely, it was as though he had suddenly just forgotten how to properly do so. His arms and legs felt heavy, like he'd never be able to lift them again. Part of him, his heart he thought, was crying in pain and burning like his hand, but the rest of him continued to go numb all over, unable to feel anything but icy shock. Tears now flowed as fast and freely as a small river from his eyes, and through the watery blur he looked up at his uncle, his mouth just barely open, unable to form words.

"I'm sorry, Axis," Grune said, carefully putting a hand on one of his shoulders, "It wasn't supposed to be this way."

Those eyes were just like his mother's. Axis remembered just barely the day before yesterday, remembered his mother laughing and smiling, her saber-teeth exposed in a grin as she let him sneak a few kora berries from the basket while they made the cookies, her eyes soft and warm, the way they always were when she looked at him when he sat in his father's old chair.

How could she just be _gone_?

The image of her laying on the earthen floor, crumpled in a heap, her eyes dull and lifeless, overlapped with that happy memory. Sounds reverberated with the image, the lizard speaking, followed by seven loud shots. He began to shake violently, staring at nothing, and when his uncle made to tug him to his feet, Axis simply allowed himself to be yanked into a standing position.

"Not to worry, my boy," his uncle was saying, though his voice sounded muffled, like he was trying to talk through a fog, "I know what you're thinking about; I've saved you the chance to right this wrong."

And then he was being led somewhere, his feet feeling like the big stones in the wall that he and Servali always played on. He didn't pay attention to anything happening around him, unable to bring himself to care about where Grune was taking, letting his uncle lead him wherever, without regard as to where they went. He tried to push the image of his mother dead on the floor from his mind with happy memories, memories of her alive. It worked…for the most part.

But the world still felt cold and dark.

It wasn't until he had to pull his feet up in order to step on the first of the white stone stairs that he came to his surroundings. Briefly scanning the area, he realized with a start that his uncle was leading him up the ruined and charred entrance to the royal palace. Part of him wanted to ask why they were coming here, but his mouth still could not form words, and he walked on, his uncle's hand still on his shoulder. Inside the halls of the palace, lizards were patrolling silently, all of them stopping to salute Axis's uncle as they passed. The first time Axis turned to look at one of them saluting, his eyes slipped past the lizard to the marble floor behind him, finding huge wet red stains turning the floor a dark color. A wave of nausea threatened to overcome and he quickly looked away, forcing his eyes to stay forward or else on his uncle.

He didn't look again after that.

Grune took him to a huge antechamber with a set of thrones perched on a raised dais at the end of the room. There was someone sitting on the central throne, but Axis barely caught a glimpse before his attention was drawn elsewhere by a weak cry of pain. He whipped his head around to see several lizards half-shoving, half-dragging an older cat toward a huge hole in the wall, as his legs seemed hard put to move. Axis watched silently, trying not to cry again as the grandfatherly cat was forced from the room, his old, bright blue eyes only catching Axis's once and softening with a great sadness.

"Axis."

He turned again at the sound of his name, and found to his shock a lizard being forced to the ground before him. The reptile looked up at him, his face registering a building fear, and Axis realized just who he was looking at, the throbbing in his right hand burning just a little worse.

"_Filthy cat."_

_Seven loud shots rang in his ears as his mother's body hit the floor._

"_MAMA!"_

"_Disgusting creatures." the same voice said, followed by the sound of an eighth shot going off._

The lizard looked from Axis to Grune, clasping his hands together pitifully.

"Please, General!" He rasped, "Show mercy!"

"I _am_, Lieutenant."

It was a bit scary, how fast his uncle's voice could go from warm and gentle to icy and dangerous. Big hands came down on his shoulders, pushing him forward a step.

"Because as of this moment, your fate is my nephew's hands."

Axis tilted his head back to look at his uncle, confused. What did he mean by _that_? Then something cold and heavy was pushed into his hands, drawing his gaze down, and he had a sinking feeling he knew what Grune meant.

"Here is your chance, Axis." the older saber-tooth murmured, crouching down until he was level with the cub, giving his shoulder a fond shake as he offered him a cold, encouraging smile. "This insubordinate lizard took away your mother. Now you have the chance to show him what it must have felt like for her, what it feels like for you."

Axis glanced up from the gun in his hand to his uncle, to the lizard, back to the gun. He stroked the cool metal absently with his thumb, feeling the pain trying to force its way back to the surface, to break the numbness that was trying to become his shell. His mind began to race, bolstered by a surge of furious anger, and he tightened his hold on the gun.

And then he remembered his mother, chuckling at him kindly when he had to come home early from playing with the other cubs..

"_Chin up, Axis my little love."_

He could almost _feel_ her slender, kind hands trying to smooth his hair again, and the anger in him died down, replaced by hollow grief.

"If I kill him…" He said slowly, the words feeling strange and wrong on his tongue, "Will it bring Mama back?"

His uncle hesitated again before answering, "No…but you have the opportunity to make right what he did wrong. You'll avenge your mother, and then you won't have to live with the pain of knowing that this monster—" he glared at the lizard, who cowered, "—won't hurt you ever again."

His mother's face swam in his vision again, speaking words of concern from the time he had wanted to fight Ryland for picking on Servali.

"_Remember, my little love: Two wrong things will never make something right."_

"If it won't bring Mama back," he answered, placing the gun back in Grune's hand, "Then it's stupid and there isn't any point in it."

The adult cat's eyes widened as his face fell in shock, and the lizard flung himself onto the floor, sobbing his gratitude and relief.

"How repulsively _touching_."  
>The sneering hiss was cold, colder than the numb void Axis had felt earlier, and it came from the direction of the raised central throne. He turned, getting a good look at the figure there for the first time, and fear swallowed everything else he felt, icy fingers of dread crawling up and down his spine.<p>

The figure had been leaning his weight heavily on the throne, but now he was rising slowly, taking careful, deliberate steps toward them. A long, flowing cloak the color of blood, tattered and frayed at the edges, barely concealed the gray-white bandages that covered his body. The few bits of withered skin Axis could see were stretched taut over sharp bones and were a revolting blue-gray color, where the sharp teeth in his mouth were bright white. But it was his eyes that made this person so frightening. They were as red as his cloak, glowing softly, broken only by a brighter glow that made up his pupils, and they swept over Axis as though they could peel off his skin and expose everything underneath that he felt inside.

"It's astonishing and rather pitiable that any nephew of yours would show such compassion." the monster hissed.

"Come now, my lord." Grune said jovially, putting an arm around Axis's shoulders, "He's just a cub. He'll grow up yet."

Axis shuddered, fear evolving into terror. Uncle Grune _worked for_ this person? Suddenly he had never wanted so much to turn and run away in hopes those red eyes would never find him again. He squirmed and his uncle tightened his arm, as though sensing his thoughts. The creature frowned at Axis, slowly extending a hand, his clawed hand reaching toward the cub's face. Axis flinched away, pushing himself farther back into his uncle's grip, fighting the urge to start screaming and crying; he did _not_ want the red nightmare monster to touch him.

"He knows to fear me," said the monster, slowly lowering his hand, "Very wise for a child."

"And with a bit of time, he'll respect you as well, Mumm-Ra." Grune remarked.

Mumm-Ra gave Grune a skeptical look, but said nothing. Axis glanced up, knees knocking as he tried to catch the older cat's eye.

"Uncle?"

"Just think; when I rebuild Thundera, I'll rule it under you, and Axis will become standing general of your forces beneath me. He has potential, he just needs the training." At this, his uncle turned and grinned. "What do you think, Axis? One day, you may even be king as well."

He didn't _want_ to be _king_. He _wanted_ to get away from his uncle, who was turning out to be as scary as Mumm-Ra. He _wanted_ to get away from Mumm-Ra, because he had never been so scared in his life.

Most of all, he wanted his mother back.

The cold emptiness and the sadness started to come back, fighting inside him with the terror he felt in the presence of the evil monster before him. He gave a small whimper and looked back up against his better judgment at Mumm-Ra, who was studying him carefully. Those red eyes bored into him, making his heart pound in dread, before they swept toward his injured hand.

"That," Mumm-Ra remarked, "Could prove to be a problem. If it heals poorly, he'll be crippled."

The red eyes flashed toward Grune, narrowing.

"I'll not have an infirm general commanding my army."

The older saber-tooth shifted, and for the first time, Axis got the impression his uncle was actually scared. He turned to look, hoping he could tell his uncle he was scared too without actually speaking.

That was a mistake.

Mumm-Ra's arm shot out, his clawed fingers closing painfully over Axis's injured hand. The cub yelped as he was yanked forward, and the next second, electricity ripped through his entire arm, making him scream in unbridled agony. The wound on his hand hurt worse than before, a thousand needles lit with fire, jabbing into the sore spot over and over again, jolting through his arm all the way up to his shoulder, relentless and unforgiving. The flesh of his hand squirmed and wriggled, boiling like hot water.

"The infirmities of living flesh are a curse, a weakness." Mumm-Ra said quietly.

He screamed again, tears streaming down his face as he tried vainly to pull away.

"Healing comes at a cost, child."

He sobbed, the pinpricks of fire and lightning stabbing ever harder in his hand.

"This hand shall be a curse to you, so long as any part of you remains loyal to Thundera." came the hiss.

The pain in his arm began to lessen, a coolness spreading through his limb, but his hand still burned and boiled and stabbed and ached. His screams died down to uncontrollable sobs. Why wasn't his uncle stopping this?

"But I am forgiving," Mumm-Ra declared simply, withdrawing his power and letting the coolness of healing spread further, but his claws continued to dig into the kitten's soft flesh, "Swearing your loyalty to me will grant you what you deserve."

Axis collapsed to his knees, barely fighting to free his hand any more, his entire frame shaking from pain and silent sobbing.

"Tell me, boy: Whom do you live to serve?"

The tears kept flowing. He just wanted it to end.

"Y-y-you…" he managed to choke out, "M-m-m-Mumm-Ra. I…l-live to s-serve…Mumm-Ra."

And finally the monster released him, letting him collapse to the floor.

"Yes," Mumm-Ra sneered, "You will."

Axis could barely stay on his knees. His entire body felt about as limp as a doll, and he swayed and shook on the spot. Finally, Grune scooped him up and into his arms, his face carefully impassive. The world began to darken again.

"Take him to one of the tanks and be quick about it." Mumm-Ra snapped, turning away from them, "It's a long ride back to my temple, and we still have to secure that wretched wizard."

Those cold words were the last thing Axis heard before waves of darkness swept over him once more.


	4. Chapter 3: The Snakes And The Slave

A/N: FINALLY I finished this bedamned chapter! I don't know quite why this took me as long as it did, but I'm ashamed to say that the season 1 finale of Thundercats killed my muse (because that ending was complete bs.) And I struggled with moving the plot. And it's not as easy as you'd think, trying to write a 3rd-person limited narrative when the protagonist is a six-and-a-half-year-old boy. And Grune wasn't cooperating. Perhaps all that added up explains why I didn't get this chapter up sooner, and I feel that excuses some of the shortness of this chapter. Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.)** NOTE: This fanfiction is a companion to my other Thundercats fanfic, "Mortal Bonds." If you want to understand some of the events that will come to take place in this story, I highly recommend you read both.** R&R please!

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><p><span>Chapter 3: The Snakes and The Slave<span>

When he finally came to, Axis found himself in strange surroundings that jostled and bumped constantly, almost like the time he and Servali had taken a ride on the back of a wagon. He tried unsuccessfully to get to his feet a couple times, and each time he wound up falling back on his behind, letting out small grunts. Finally he just decided to stay put and look around, taking in the dark, tiny place made of metal. Where in the world was he? Why was he in a moving, bumpy metal something? He sniffled, the tears threatening to come back, and he took in a big breath of stale air that smelled slimy and nasty.

"So, the kitten's awake." A voice hissed.

Axis looked around wildly and found himself staring at one of the ugliest lizards he'd seen yet. He was short with dark green skin and a pale stomach that protruded into the biggest, fattest belly Axis knew of. His ears were big and frilly, like some of the really pretty dresses Muaraine had shown Axis before, and his face was shaped like a funny-looking beak. The cub might have burst out laughing at the ugly lizard, were it not for his menacing yellow eyes and mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

"Seems kind of small for a saber-tooth." The lizard said mockingly, turning to face someone nearby.

"And you've seen how many saber-tooth kittens in your life, Slithe?" That someone challenged, and Axis sighed with relief as he saw his uncle turn and glare down at the lizard.

"I'm just trying to bring up a point of concern," Slithe hissed in an oily tone, "After all, there are rumors saying that our master will eventually prefer to have the child become one of the commanders of his army. Perhaps even head general."

Axis shuddered and looked down at the metal floor. The last thing he wanted to remember was talking to Mumm-Ra about his future. His eyes slipped to the back of his right hand, and a ghost of his earlier pain flashed through his memory. There was a ugly pink slash where the gunshot had burned through his fur, and the fur around the healing scar was lighter in color, almost in a star-shape where the healing spell had done its work.

"And whether or not there are any truth to those rumors, you shouldn't have anything to worry about, now should you?" Grune challenged, caramel eyes narrowing dangerously. "After all, he's a child."  
>"Children grow up," Slithe retorted, his own eyes slipping to Axis. His gaze found the scar before Axis could cover it up, and he practically sneered with glee. "Although some are more fortunate than others. He'll be lucky if that hand works decently during training."<p>

That caught the kitten's attention. He jerked his head up, looking wildly from Slithe to his uncle. What kind of training were they talking about? He desperately wanted to ask, but the dread building in his chest told him he already had a good idea of what they meant.

"Then we'll just have to train him how to use both hands in armed combat." Grune shot back, crossing his arms and smiling triumphantly as the color drained from Slithe's face.

"A left-handed commander?" The lizard said. "That's bad luck."

"No," Grune replied, "Lizards are just superstitious."

Axis glanced down and looked at his other hand, flexing his fingers experimentally. Bad luck? How was being able to use your left hand to do things bad luck? And besides, didn't most people use both their hands if they were lifting, carrying, pushing, or pulling something? After all, there _were_ two of them.

"Is that an insult, Grune?"

"Perhaps. Why don't you find out?"  
>A huge hand came down on Axis's shoulder, and he looked up to see his uncle smiling coldly at the fat lizard, who glanced between both of them, looking nervous. The two older men continued to stare each other down, until at last another lizard, somewhere further ahead of them in this strange, dark metal place, spoke up.<p>

"Commander!"

"Yes?" Grune and Slithe answered at the same time, only to glare at each other again.

"We've arrived."

Suddenly the big, moving metal something came to a jolting halt, a low creaking and groaning sounding throughout it, and Axis let out a soft whimper, hugging his arms to his side. He wanted to get out of this strange place, but he did not feel like he would be leaving it to go to a better one.

"Come now, Axis. I'm going to take you into one of the most incredible places you've ever seen."

And before he quite knew what was occurring, his uncle pulled him to his feet and walked him outside. Axis gave a glance back once his feet were on solid ground, and stared in open-mouthed astonishment to see they had left a giant, moving metal beast. It looked kind of like a really strange lizard with a flat head and funny feet.

"We were in that thing?" He mouthed the question as he looked up at Grune, his eyes going huge. The older saber-tooth glanced back, then looked at him and started laughing jovially.

"Hard to believe, isn't it? Eh? Did you enjoy it? Perhaps when you're older, you'll get to drive one!"

Axis wasn't completely sure he would want to, especially since it had been a really bumpy ride when he woke up, but it sounded a little fun. Kind of. He turned away, to see where they were headed. It looked like a really, _really_ big place shaped kind of like a triangle, the same color as the sandy ground that shifted under his feet. Axis gulped. The palace of Thundera had been big, but this place looked even bigger, like the very top point was touching the sky. But the longer he looked, the more it gave him a bad feeling. The fur on the back of his neck started to stand up straight, and a part of his mind kept saying over and over again that he had to run away.

But what choice did he have now? He glanced sadly at the scar on his right hand. He didn't know where he was, how far away home was, and if he tried to run away, he knew his uncle would be upset. Mumm-Ra would be upset too, and Axis did _not_ want to see that monster get mad at him. He was scary enough when he was just normal.

They walked past many more of the big, moving machines that had stopped, the lizards surrounding them turning and standing stiffly to give salutes. Both his uncle and Slithe acknowledged these gestures, although the fat lizard wound up glowering at the saber-tooth for doing so. Axis watched as Slithe did his best to trot on ahead of them, his tail swishing indignantly. The cub tried his best not to giggle; from behind, it was a rather comical view of the long, sinuous tail trying to move elegantly when it sprouted from a back that was as wide as two other lizards put together. He was led up to a certain point of the strange place, and then Slithe touched the sand-colored stones, which lit up with a faint red glow. There was a low, shuddering rumble, and the side of the strange place opened, revealing a door, leading to a dark metal corridor beyond. And despite his growing feeling that this was the last place on Third Earth he wanted to go into, the cub had to admit he was feeling a little…well, excited. That hidden magic door was really cool, and maybe there were more secret things like that inside.

"See?" His uncle said, giving him an approving smile. "It's not so bad, is it?"

But the further in they went, the more Axis's brief enthusiasm began to dwindle and his fear began to rise once more. Yes, it was that bad, no matter what his uncle said. All the metal, everything so sleek and flawless, was unnerving, and the entire place looked all too easy to get lost in. All the halls they took looked the same, and Mumm-Ra could pop out of anywhere. At least, Axis thought he would do that.

Unfortunately, after many long minutes of marching down identical hallways, someone did pop out of nowhere.

It came like a sudden rush of wind; one second there had been no one in the halls, the next there were six or seven of the strangest figures Axis had ever seen surrounding them. From the waist up, they looked a lot like the lizards, but they didn't appear to have visible noses, and thin hoods like giant ears rose off the back of their head, flaring out to their full extent when they looked at Grune. And from the waist down, they were simply huge tails, tails without legs, that curled and wrapped back upon themselves in thick, rolling coils. All of them wore jewelry, especially the one that seemed to be the leader, and it was hard to tell which were male and which were female.

"General Grune." The leader spoke in a hissing voice, his tone dangerous.

"Nagendra." Grune replied levelly.

"That'sss high priessst to you, cat!" Nagendra hissed, leaning forward on his coils, hood flaring higher. "You forget your place! After all, it was YOUR people that led the rebellion againssst Our Dark Massster years ago."

"And you forget that I was the one to free Mumm-Ra from his sarcophagus," the saber-tooth shot back, "Do you _really_ want to test me, snake?"

Axis swallowed over a growing knot in his throat; his uncle was brave, but there were seven of these terrifying figures, and he was willing to bet if Nagendra was the leader, the others would help him. He gave a soft whimper and tugged at his uncle's massive hand, hoping Grune would get the idea and not start fighting. Unfortunately, the motion drew the attention of the snakes to him, whereas they had overlooked the presence of such a tiny creature beforehand. The snakes stared at him in astonishment, as though not quite believing what they were seeing, and Axis froze, feeling like he couldn't move a single arm or leg. Their gazes weren't as terrifying as Mumm-Ra, but he had the sick twist in his stomach telling him he could _not_ look away.

"A kitten?" Nagendra said, tilting his hooded head, his voice unsure.

"What a charming little creature," remarked another snake, slithering forward, hiding her face largely behind the stretch of a fan, "Perhapsss too charming for you, General."

Axis squeezed his uncle's hand harder, trying to tell him he wanted to get out of there; the snake-lady was pretty in her own way, but she also looked at him like he was some kind of food and she was hungry. To his relief, Grune tightened his hold on his hand and addressed the snake-lady angrily.

"Watch yourself, Slythia." He growled. "My nephew is my business; you need to worry about your own."

"Your nephew, you sssay?" Slythia remarked, snapping her fan shut. She continued with her thought, addressing Grune, but Axis missed most of the words. He was too fixated with her fan. She moved the hand holding it a lot, and she would play with it, snapping it open, sometimes only halfway open, before snapping it shut again. Her wrist twisted quite a bit too, and only the motion out of the corner of his eye prompted Axis to look at the other snakes. To his surprise, the other snakes were also watching Slythia's fan move, even Nagendra, though he generally tried to keep his focus on the conversation going on. Axis crinkled his nose, thinking it odd. What was so special about Slythia's fan? Was it magic or something?

"This conversation is finished!" Grune snarled abruptly, giving Axis's arm a tug that made him yelp in surprise, "I'll see you at Jaga's interrogation."

He shoved their way past the snakes, dragging Axis along in a sort of hopping stumble. The cub did his best to keep his balance, but his concentration was flimsy, as the hair on the back of his neck started to rise again. He glanced behind them, to see the snakes watching their progress with those eyes that were up to no good. And Slythia…Slythia's eyes were on him, peering above the top of her fan.

Suddenly, Axis was afraid again, more afraid than he would ever tell his uncle. And the feeling of those snake-eyes watching him didn't leave, not even when Grune took him to a new room and declared it his.

"This is all yours, my nephew. A room among the best quarters to yourself. Most of those foot soldiers don't even have it this good!"

It was dark, almost impossible to see in, and Axis did his best to tread carefully, unable to see where any of the standard-issue furniture was. He didn't want it 'this good,' not if it meant he had to stay by himself in a big dark room with nothing and no one. He shivered, rubbing his arms, and looked up at his uncle, who was smiling in an expectant sort of way.

" 'S dark." He mumbled, his voice coming out scratchy and halting. The sound of it startled him a little; he had forgotten he hadn't said a word since Mumm-Ra had made him promise to work for him. Grune blinked, as though just realizing what his nephew was saying, and looked around the room helplessly.

"So it is," he said. "But really, Axis, it's not that bad."

Axis didn't say anything, but turned and felt around carefully, trying to find something to sit on. After a couple minutes of fumbling, he heard his uncle clear his throat in a sort of self-conscious way, and glanced up again.

"I'll see if I can't find one of the sla—indentured servants to come and fix the light problem." He declared, striding over and lifting the kitten off the floor as though he weighed nothing more than feather pillow. Axis gulped, shivering nervously as he was set down on a cold, semi-soft bed. "Wait right here, Axis. Someone will be around shortly."

"W-wait! Don't leave me!" Axis barely managed to whisper, but his uncle was already gone and disappearing down the hall outside the room. At the least, he did leave the door open, but it helped the kitten's nervousness only slightly. The room was still dark, cold, and the air didn't smell quite right. He looked down at his feet, playing with his hands absentmindedly, trying not to think about being alone in a dark room with his uncle gone. He tried even harder not to think about the last two days he could remember and what had transpired. The last thing he wanted was for his uncle to come back and find him crying. Grune had not yet complained about him crying, but he had a feeling that this was a place where crying like a big baby would make people—especially the wrong people—very angry with him.

Oh, but he wanted to cry so badly! What else could he do? He didn't have a choice except to do whatever his uncle and Mumm-Ra told him, and he certainly didn't want to think of what might happen if he disobeyed.

"Mama…" he squeaked into the darkness, "I just want to go home…"

He sniffled, and began an internal battle, struggling to fight back the tears as time passed. Several minutes later, he was losing the fight, losing horribly, when someone entered the room. Before he could try to get a good look, the room filled with bright, blinding light and he shut his eyes against it, giving a tiny whimper of pain.

"Now don't—" A voice he didn't know started to say, but whatever the thought was they had, they never finished, the end of the words being choked off. Axis rubbed his eyes vigorously, the first of the tears starting to leak out, and with a lot of blinking, he managed to twist around and look at the newcomer. He was a lizard, taller than any other lizard Axis had seen yet, with dark green scales, a yellow underbelly, and a strange red crest that rose off the top of his head. He wore only a double loincloth and two metal bands that encased his forearms from the wrist to the elbow, and he stared at Axis with bright yellow eyes that widened in shock.

"By the gods of the ancient world!" The lizard exhaled. "You're a child!"

Axis couldn't hold the tears in any longer. He averted his face, and began to cry, a soft, hiccupping sob bursting out of his chest.

"Oh, _fangs_! Please don't cry!"

He couldn't stop; the hiccup-sobs kept coming, the tears streamed down his face like waterfalls, and the best he could manage was to shakily reach up and try to vainly wipe the tears away. The lizard padded over to him, and after a moment's hesitation, two long, metal-wrapped and scaly arms gently enclosed Axis.

"Shh, shh…" the lizard whispered. "It's alright…It'll be alright."

"N-n-n-no it w-w-woooonnn't…" he sobbed. "I-I miss Mama…I wanna g-go h-huh-hoooommme…"

"Shhhh," the lizard said gently, giving him a gentle hug and rocking him back and forth, the same way Muaraine had always done when he was tired, "What is your name, nephew of Grune?"

"A-Ah-Ax-Axis." He answered with a tiny gulp.

"Axis," the lizard addressed him gently, and when he looked up, he brushed back Axis's blonde hair soothingly, brow-ridges tilting in concern, "I am Cazarak. And I promise you, everything is going to be okay. I promise."

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><p>AN: Hey, me again. Just wanted to point out a few things, starting with the fact that Grune is a terrible uncle. And Slythia somehow has circumvented all written intentions for her character and has learned how to speak in code via her fan. And finally, the introduction of Cazarak. Just because. (To those of you reading this who have not read this fanfic's companion story, "Mortal Bonds," please dedicate both Slythia and Cazarak to memory, as they are important to Axis's story and development.)


	5. Chapter 4: The Gauntlet

**A/N: As if I didn't take long enough between updates already. But at last chapter 4 is complete! I'm telling you what, this fanfic still isn't easy to write, considering all the things I've mentioned before: the third-person limited narration through the eyes of a child, the militant, terrifying atmosphere of Mumm-Ra's lair, the training aspect...all of it. I also wanted to show some more of Axis's emotions and thoughts, to help show a side of him that wasn't a crying child missing his mother, but still a very believable child, which you'll hopefully spot aspects of in this chapter. Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) NOTE: This fanfiction is a companion to my other Thundercats fanfic, "Mortal Bonds." If you want to understand some of the events that will come to take place in this story, I highly recommend you read both. R&R please!**

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><p><span>Chapter 4: The Gauntlet<span>

Axis woke the next morning, barely remembering the previous night. It had been nothing but a big blur of tears until he had cried himself to sleep. On waking, he found he was still in the lonely room in Mumm-Ra's pyramid, quite by himself. Having no sense of time or ideas what to do, he slid off the cold bed and started to get dressed. His clothes had been carefully folded and set in a pile off to the side, and they smelled really clean. Axis burrowed his face into the material, shutting his eyes and inhaling deeply. Whatever his clothes had been cleaned with, there was still the barest hint of a flowery smell that was his mother's scent lingering in the cloth.

"Mama..."

Her smiling face surfaced in his thoughts as he breathed in, followed by a phantasmal ringing of seven shots. He opened his eyes, fighting back tears, and noticed something new among his clothes. It was a dark green sash, molded into a strange, twisting shape, and at the top end there was set a jewel the color of blood, with a black, twin cobra symbol in the center of the gem. Axis shuddered. Was he supposed to _wear_ that evil-looking sash?

"Aahhh, Axis! I see you're awake, boy!"

He looked over as his uncle walked in the door, looking perfectly at ease.

"Uncle Grune, what's this?" He asked immediately, pointing to the sash.

"That? That is a new mark of your station, dear nephew!" Grune declared. "Here, I'll show you how it goes on!"

"I don't wanna wear it." He said at once.

"Nonsense!" The older sabertooth snorted before proceeding to force the sash onto the child. Axis kicked and flailed, squirmed and struggled, doing the best he could to escape his uncle's grip, but in the end there was no beating the huge cat, and the sash was wrapped around Axis's back, the heavy weighted ends squeezing his front.

"You're more slippery than a fish-man! What would your mother say if she saw you giving me a hard time?" Grune demanded, kneeling down to look the cub in his eyes. The tears threatened to obscure Axis's vision and he glared at his uncle, suddenly angry.

"Mama can't say anything about it." He growled bitterly. "You know that!"

Something shone in the caramel pools of his uncle's eyes, and the expression on the bearded face softened. For a long moment, Grune said nothing, merely sighed and gave Axis's shoulders a gentle squeeze.

"Yes," he finally admitted, "You're right. I'm sorry, Axis. But you will have to be strong from here on out."

He didn't reply, but looked away, biting his lower lip. He wanted to be strong, he always had, but he didn't know the first thing about how to be strong.

"Well, now that you're dressed and ready, I'll have that sl...indentured servant bring you a little something to eat. After that, we're starting your training."

"Already?" He asked, but his uncle was heading out the door and offered no answer. Axis clenched his fists and fumed for a good moment, then sat down on the edge of his bed with a sigh and waited. And as he waited, he thought ababout how unfair the whole situation was. It was unfair that he now had to stay in this scary place and wear a creepy sash and do training. It was unfair that his uncle kept leaving him alone instead of staying with him and protecting him. But what was most unfair...

"Mama's gone." He whispered. "And I don't have a home any more."

He could no longer recall what it had been about, but he remembered another time his mother had told him something important.

_"Axis, everyone wants everything to be fair. But not everyone can agree on what _is _fair, and that's why people start fighting."_

_ "But _that's _not fair either, Mama!"_

_ "I know._ Life _isn't fair, my little love. That is why you must learn it is important to always be fair to others, and to accept that sometimes, you will not receive that same fairness in return."_

The more he pondered on her words, the starker the memory became, and he realized something he had never truly noticed before; When his mother had finished speaking, her gaze had drifted to the wicker chair he had loved sitting in so much. She always looked at that chair whenever she had thought of his father, she said, for Damorn had made that chair for her.

Had his father said those exact words before?

He continued to wonder for a while, until Cazarak arrived in the room, carrying food. The lizard had a somewhat sour expression on his face that brightened when he looked at Axis, and he gently sat the food down on a low, wooden table. The cub inched forward, puzzled by the lizard's strange silence. He wanted to ask why Cazarak hadn't said anything, but he got his answer seconds later when his uncle re-entered the room as well.

"There now boy, eat up!" Grune chortled, pushing Axis closer to the food. The cub nodded soundlessly and reached for the chill meat, but froze and withdrew at the aroma coming off it.

"Uncle Grune?" He said, voice wavering, "This smells funny. I think it went bad..."

"Hmm? Oh, it's just fish, Axis. All fish smells like it's rotting."

"Then how do you know if it's really rotten?"

"Trust me, boy; if it were rotting, the smell would be even worse. Go on, have a bite. It's the breakfast of warriors!" He insisted, stabbing at the fish with a fork, which he promptly pushed into Axis's hand. He wanted to object that he didn't want to be a warrior, but his stomach let out a loud grumble, and reluctantly he took the bite of fish. Much to his surprise, it was delicious, if a bit salty, and crumbled in his mouth after the first bite. He chewed quickly, swallowed, and dug into the fish with a new fervor that had his uncle laughing. He hadn't realized how hungry he was, and in that moment, the fish was the best thing he had ever tasted. He finished quickly, and at once Grune whisked him away, before he had a chance to say good morning to Cazarak.

"Do I have to learn all this training stuff?" He asked, looking up at his uncle, trotting to keep up with the older cat's long strides.

"You've pledged to serve Lord Mumm-Ra," Grune answered in an odd tone of voice, "And he wishes for you to one day hold the rank of general over his army. In order for that to happen..."

He led Axis through a new doorway, in which they found a huge open area with a dirt floor. Several lizards were out on the dirt floor, sparring with an assortment of weapons. Further behind them was an odd contraption the kitten couldn't quite see, and there were many metal crates full of things scattered here and there.

"...you first have to become a powerful warrior." Grune finished, coaxing Axis to follow him out into the middle of the sparring area. As they approached, the lizards began to pause and turn to watch, inclining their heads and respectfully murmuring "General" as they walked past. They cleared away from the center, where the huge sabertooth indicated the kitten should wait, and Axis watched as his uncle rummaged through a metal crate, anxiously shifting his weight from one tiny foot to the other. Finally he came back, holding two wooden swords and several long strips of cloth in his hands. Without a word, he came over, knelt down, and began to wrap the cub's hands and feet with the cloth, and Axis did his best not to squirm.

"Remember it is always important to wrap your hands and feet, boy." He explained quietly, "It's a dead cat that walks on cut and bloodied feet, and it's a young fool who doesn't protect himself from blisters born of weapon handling."

"But Uncle Grune," Axis said, wrinkling his nose, "_Your_ hands aren't wrapped."

"I've spent years building the callouses on my palms, Axis!" He said with a smile, holding up a rough hand. "Years of toughening up my skin. I don't need the wraps any more. And one day, neither will you. Now!"

He held up one of the wooden swords and pushed it into Axis's open palm, but between the tight coils wrapped around his right hand and the unexpected weight of the wooden weapon, a quick jab of pain twisted the knotted scar on his hand and he lost his grip with a yelp.

"Pick it up." Grune sighed.

"But it hurt me!"

"And for a while it will. But we have to make this weakness of yours a strength. We're going to practice right-handed fighting for a little bit each day."

"I thought you told the smelly, ugly, fat lizard I was going to learn to use both hands."

A pleased grin spread over the general's face as he ruffled his nephew's hair and laughed. "Quite right, boy! I _did_ tell Slithe you would be trained to fight using both hands! And so you shall!"

For the first time in what felt like forever, Axis smiled, and picked up the practice sword again, this time switching it to his left hand. The weight still came as something of a shock to him-it was nothing like the toy swords he and Servali used to play with-and he experimentally swung it around a bit, trying to get used to the length and density of the weapon.

"Careful where you swing that, Axis!" Grune said, leaning back to avoid a close swing that almost caught him on the ear. "Now, wait a moment. Keep it elevated-elevated, that means raised-your shoulders are fine where they are, but you need to widen your stance. Spread your feet apart."

Axis obeyed, moving his feet apart until his uncle signaled he was good.

"Very good! Remember, your stance is always crucial in battle. May even save your life one day," he explained, "Now, try lowering the sword to waist height. Good. Now raise it to arm height again. Keep steady..."

Axis struggled to support the wooden sword's weight, chewing his lower lip, and he glanced around, surprised and embarrassed to see all the lizards present were watching. He glanced again at the practice weapon, held out at arm's length, and felt heat rise in his cheeks.

"I look dumb." He mumbled. He felt his uncle's caramel eyes studying him for a moment, then the older cat rose to his feet, hefted the second wooden sword, and with a snap of his wrist, his sword was knocked from his hand. He let out a yowl of surprise and looked up to find those caramel pools had gone cold, studying him carefully.

"Lesson one: Never let your guard down, even for a second. Now pick up the sword."

He glared, let out a low growl, and inched sideways to reach for the sword, never taking his eyes off his uncle. This had to be some kind of test or something, and he was going to pass it, no matter what it took.

His hand was almost to the wooden hilt when a soft hiss gave him a split second of warning, and he withdrew before the blade cut down where his practice sword lay. He stared in shock, blue eyes drifting from the swords to his uncle, who was smirking triumphantly.

"_Very_ good." Grune said quietly, "Now, pick up the sword. For real this time."

And so began the first day of Axis's training.

Grune was a driven, demanding teacher, altering between guiding the kitten through stances and motions, and suddenly forcing him to defend himself. And while he never made a direct attack against him, Axis wound up getting several bruises from falling to the ground and from barely blocked hits from where the other practice sword crashed against the one he held. Within a few hours he was sitting on the ground, panting hard and drenched in sweat, sides aching and cramping, hands and feet itching beneath the cloth wraps.

"Well done, Axis," Grune said in a pleased tone, "A very accomplished first day of training."

Accomplished? What was his uncle talking about? He had barely done anything, unless you wanted to start counting up the number of new bruises he had. And worse than all the hurting and the aching were the smug stares of all the lizards. They had watched the entire time, seen everything he had done wrong and every time he had fallen down. They were laughing at him, and he knew it, and they knew he knew it.

He almost wished he was back home and putting up with Ryland being a bully again. That wouldn't have nearly been as bad as this felt. With a sigh, he started to get to his feet, when he looked at the contraption again that stood toward the end of the arena. It was huge, full of spinning things, swinging blades, rolling platforms...

"What's that, uncle?"

Grune glanced over, following his gaze. "What, that? That's the gauntlet."

"What is it?" He asked, pushing himself up on his hands.

"Part of the combat training," the general explained, "Helps you to hone your reflexes, your ability to time an opponent's moves..."

"It looks hard." Axis remarked, watching some of the huge axe blades swing lazily back and forth.

"It is." His uncle confirmed. "Some of our best fighters still can't make it through the gauntlet unscathed, no matter how hard they try."

Axis watched the axes swing, the armed poles spin, the floor logs roll over and over, the sacks of sawdust threaten to smack against each other. He pulled himself completely to his feet, and with a sense of irritation borne of his humiliation with his training, he stomped his way over to the gauntlet, fists swinging at his sides as he fixed a determined scowl onto his face.

"Axis? What are you doing?"

He ignored the older sabertooth, just as he ignored the whispers and amused laughs of the assembled lizards. He could tell the gauntlet was tough alright. He didn't even know why he was doing this; it was a dumb idea.

He ground his teeth and let out a kitten's growl as he climb the rickety steps to the top ramp where the first segment of the obstacle course waiting. Dumb idea or not, he had to prove he wasn't just some stupid baby kitten they could make fun of. He heard his uncle call for him again, telling him to come down before he got hurt, but he only clenched his fists and dug in his heels.

_Okay, you dumb gauntlet_, he thought, _Try me on for size!_

His feet left the boards with a loud creaking of the wooden planks and he charged forward.

The first sack of sawdust came out of its swing and smacked him hard in his side. The second followed a heartbeat later and smacked hard into his opposite side, completely knocking the wind out of him.

It was the third sack that finally knocked him off, and he flew into the air, soaring for a frozen moment like a bird flying upside-down, before crashing none-too-gently into the ground.

The lizards started to roar with laughter, and Grune rushed to his side.

"Axis! Axis! How many saberteeth do I have?"

Shakily, he pushed himself up and growled out an answer.

"W-wuh...one."

"Cheater," Grune whispered, "Your eyes are closed." Then he added, loud enough for everyone to hear, "What in the world did you think you were doing? You can't run the gauntlet."

"Yes I can!" He protested angrily, which only made the lizards laugh even more. His uncle sighed, clicked his tongue several times in disapproval, and shook his head slowly.

"Maybe in time," he agreed, just a touch too agreeable, "But not yet. This is just your first day of training. You won't be able to run the gauntlet for some time to come."

"I'm still going to try!" Axis snapped, embarrassed and infuriated that Grune would have such little faith in him.

"You're just going to wind up getting yourself hurt. Come on. I think you've had enough for today."

And with that, he hauled Axis to his feet, clamped a huge hand on his shoulder, and steered the kitten out of the training room. Axis's face burned with shame and embarrassment, flushing hotter and redder with every mocking whisper and laugh of the assembled lizards, and he ducked his head as they left, silently promising himself that one day he would beat the gauntlet, no matter what it took.


	6. Chapter 5: Jaga's Blessing

**A/N: Can I just say I'm proud of myself for finishing this so quickly? And I still like how it turned out regardless. Once again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. (If you don't know my deviantArt username to find my gallery, I'm on there as Yoruhoshi.) NOTE: This fanfiction is a companion to my other Thundercats fanfic, "Mortal Bonds." If you want to understand some of the events that will come to take place in this story, I highly recommend you read both. R&R please!**

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><p><span>Chapter 5: Jaga's Blessing<span>

Cazarak's eerie silence from earlier in the morning didn't hold for long. The moment he saw Axis return from the training session, the lizard fled the room for a few brief moments, then returned bearing several bandages, a washbasin, and a threadbare cloth. He kept his tongue until Grune was called away, then at once he began muttering in an indignant fury as he dabbed gently at Axis's bruises.

"Of all the stupid things!" The lizard hissed. "I cannot believe he made you begin training today with those brutes, and on the gauntlet, to top it all off!"

"But I wanted to go on the gauntlet!" Axis yowled, flinching from the washrag as Cazarak dabbed with it at his cheek. "I'm not a baby!"

"While I admire your courage Axis, the gauntlet is not safe. Who knows what sort of injuries you could get from it?" He huffed in response, shaking his crested head as he submerged the cloth in the washbasin. "It's bad enough you're already training with those-"

"But I'm not fighting with any of the lizards yet," the cub interrupted, "Only Uncle Grune trained with me today."

All at once Cazarak's face darkened and his eyes narrowed sharply, clear inner eyelids flicking as fast as lightning, and he paused, wringing out the washcloth so tightly Axis thought it would rip in those massive claws. He swallowed, leaning back out of instinct. Cazarak was so kind; he didn't think the big lizard would ever look so...so..._angry_.

"You say your uncle did this to you?" He said quietly, inner eyelids flicking again.

"Y-yessir," he squeaked, "He said he doesn't want me training with any of the other soldiers just yet. He says I gotta learn the basics."

Cazarak's scowl deepened, but his hands became a touch more gentle with the cloth, and he took great care to avoid wrapping the bandages around Axis too tight. Axis felt his stomach give a guilty lurch, and he stared gloomily down at the floor, trying to avoid glancing at his right hand. Why was his new friend so quiet all of a sudden? He didn't like it.

"Cazarak?" He said tentatively.

"Hmm?"

"Did I make you mad?"

The lizard let out a heavy sigh, the scarlet crest on his head drooping a little, and he gathered up the cloth and washbasin.

"No, _you_ didn't."

"But..." He started to protest, only to fall short. What could he say to make Cazarak feel better? He didn't know; grown-ups were confusing and frustrating that way. He glanced back down at the floor, kicking his feet and feeling overwhelmed. It wasn't even lunchtime yet, and already the day felt like it was going on forever! First the creepy sash, then fish for breakfast, then training, and now Cazarak was grumpy?

"Bet the day can't get any worse..." He whispered to himself, crossing his arms and sticking out his lower lip in a pout.

"What did you say?" Cazarak asked, crest rising again as he put the washbasin away, and he glanced over at the kitten, blinking with both sets of eyelids this time. Axis turned his head away, chewing his lower lip in hopes he wouldn't seem so sulky.

"Nothin'." He mumbled, kicking his feet some more. He heard a rich, warm chuckle and looked up, relieved to see the lizard shaking his head and smiling.

"The gods of the ancient world must have blessed you, Axis. You're still such a child after what has happened to you already." He said kindly, and the cub wrinkled his nose. He didn't like being reminded that he was still little, but he chewed his lip some more, deciding to stay quiet about it, since Cazarak was happy again.

"Tell you what," the lizard said, coming over and crouching down to his eye level, "How about we find out what to get you for lunch?"

He opened his mouth to answer, when a loud, unearthly sound rang through the entire temple. Axis jumped, looking around wildly. What _was_ that sound? It cracked and boomed and shrieked all at once, almost like lightning and thunder together, but with something else in there. Chills ran up his spine and the fur on his shoulders rose abruptly, but despite his apprehension, he felt...curious. Before he considered whether or not it was a good idea, the cub leapt to his feet and dashed out of the room, running as fast as he could to find the noise, a protesting Cazarak hot on his heels. He ran through several corridors, trying to track the sound, which rose and fell, like something was making it over and over again, and slowly, the sound grew louder and louder in his ears. He started down another hall, and the sound became softer than before, and he spun on the spot, skidding on the smooth floor, and heading back for the last spot where the thundering, shrieking crack had been the loudest. Cazarak slid behind him, clawed hands grasping at the air as he tried to catch the kitten.

"Axis!" He hissed, "We shouldn't be here!"

He wasn't listening; the sound was here, he was sure of it. The door before him stood open just a crack, and he could see a glimmer of bright light coming from it. Tentatively, caught in a mixture of curiosity and trepidation, he pushed the door slightly inward as the powerful, resonating sound blasted around him. Beyond the door, he saw several lizards gathered in a circle, and at their head stood his uncle, looking furious beyond anything Axis had ever seen him, and standing at the top of many stairs behind Grune was Mumm-Ra, red eyes glittering in the darkness as he glared down at something in the center of the strange ring of lizards. Axis gulped, feeling his insides go cold. He had to leave, but his feet were rooted to the spot, and his gaze went from Mumm-Ra to the thing in the middle of the small gathering, and he received a jolt that ran through his entire frame.

There was a person in their midst, another cat. An _older_ cat with a long white beard, a blue helmet, and robes far richer than any clothes the kitten had ever seen in his life. He lay sprawled on the floor, his head turned to the side, and he trembled all over, shaking as thin, curling wisps of smoke rose off his clothes. And with no warning, the kitten realized it was he, the old cat, who had been making the eerie shrieks that rose and fell with the cracking of lightning and the booming of thunder. He had been screaming in pain.

Axis shook with terror, tears starting to brim at the edges of his eyes. What was happening to that poor old man? And why was his uncle looking at him like he hated him?

"TCH! Nothing!" Grune spat. "Bah!" He lowered his left arm, a huge mace hanging lazily from his hand. Mumm-Ra tilted his head to the side, and Axis got the horrible feeling the evil monster somehow thought this was all incredibly funny. Slowly, step by step he descended the stairs, looming and ominous in the dim gloom.

"Your methods are ineffective, general." He rasped in that horrid voice. "Brute strength is a tool of barbarians."

He strode toward them, and Grune stepped aside respectfully, allowing Mumm-Ra room to look down on the older cat.

"Wizards...are a trifle more bothersome to deal with. Their power comes from the mind." He remarked coldly, and the old cat stirred, opening shockingly dark blue eyes. "Meaning it is the mind that must be used as the battlefield."

"I'm afraid you'll have a tad more difficulty in breaking my mind than you will my body." The old cat said in a strong, courageous voice. His blue eyes then slipped away, and found Axis, going wide as they locked onto him. The cub jumped, and in that moment, Mumm-Ra and Grune followed the old cat's gaze.

"Axis?" Grune said in confusion, the hate easing out of his expression. But he couldn't answer his uncle; he was caught under two very different but immensely powerful gazes, the red eyes flashing in irritation, and the blue softening in vast sorrow. Without a word, Mumm-Ra turned, all eyes shifting as he moved, and he approached Axis in that same slow, deliberate way as he had before. The kitten began to shake harder, eyes going wider and wider in fear as he cowered, trying to make himself smaller in hopes he would be ignored, but to no avail: Mumm-Ra never stopped.

"My lord, if I could just-"

One of the bandaged, gray hands shot out, cutting Grune off, and Axis let out a small whimper, saberteeth biting into his lower lip.

"Your curiosity is going to get you in trouble one of these days." Mumm-Ra said quietly, and he swung the same hand back around. Axis flinched, expecting to be struck, but the hand simply came down on top of his head, fingers curling and clenching his hair tightly. He let out a small mewl of pain as Mumm-Ra turned him around, forcing him to walk out of the room, where Cazarak waited in wide-eyed horror.

"See to it the boy doesn't come here again unless summoned." He hissed, snapping his wrist and thrusting Axis forward sharply into the lizard's arms. Cazarak nodded quickly, trying to usher him away as Mumm-Ra turned back to enter the room again, but not before Axis took one last look inside.

The older cat's blue eyes still watched him, and this time, there was something else shining in those indigo pools with the sadness.

_"Bless you, child."_

Axis's eyes widened as he heard the cat's voice, not with his ears, but in his head, as clear as one of his own thoughts, and those blue eyes shut in acknowledgment.

_"You bought me the moment I needed."_

Then the doors closed behind Mumm-Ra with a sharp bang, and Cazarak tugged at him again, urging him to return to his room. This time, the cub obeyed without a word, feeling as empty again as he had when he'd woken after his mother's death, and with a strange certainty he couldn't explain, he knew the old cat was going to die soon.

"You've the demon's own luck, Axis! You could've been killed or worse if Mumm-Ra hadn't been distracted and he turned his mind-spell on you." Cazarak scolded.

"He's gonna kill him, isn't he?" He murmured.

They stopped walking, and the lizard looked down at him, thrown for a moment.

"Isn't he?" He whispered, the tears starting to brim around his eyes again, hotter than before. "That poor old cat. Mumm-Ra's gonna kill him."

"Axis, that's not something you should be talking about." He answered quietly, the tips of his scarlet crest turning down. "Come on, let's get back to your room."

"I'm not really hungry any more..." he muttered, looking down at his feet as they started to walk again, and it was true. His stomach seemed to have disappeared from inside him altogether. They went slowly, neither saying a word, and for that, Axis was grateful. He thought if Cazarak tried to tell him things would be okay, he would just start crying.

They had almost reached his room again, when they stopped abruptly once more, and he jerked his head up at the strange, stale smell that filled the air, only to see two more unpleasant faces staring down at him.

"And where might you be headed?" Slythia asked from behind her fan, eye locked on Axis, though he guessed she was really talking to Cazarak.

"The more important quessstion isss where are they coming from?" Nagendra hissed, acid green eyes flicking from the cub to the slave. "After all, you're going to missss ssseeing the Dark Massster rip the information he wantsss from the cleric'sss frail mind."

"Oh, how I do love a good torture!" Slythia purred behind her fan, averting her gaze to nothing as her expression glazed over with bliss. Cazarak's hand tightened on Axis's, and the cub noticed the lizard's crest flatten sharply in anger as he glared back at the snakes.

"Let us pass." He responded coldly, and the cobras' hoods flared open as their heads snapped about to look at him.

"Watch your tongue, ssslave, if you value it." Nagendra hissed, drawing himself up on the massive coils of his tail until he towered over them all. Sudden anger flared in Axis's chest, burning bright and dousing his turmoil of other emotions, and he took a stuff forward, clenching his fists and baring all of his teeth.

"Who do you think you are, bossing my friend around?" He snapped. The black slits of the snake's pupils flicked onto him, going thinner as he stared in surprise, which quickly turned to irritation.

"I am Nagendra, high priessst of the order of Hisss Dark Majesssty," the cobra hissed, "And I sssay I'll let you both passss if I feel like it!"

"I'm Axis," he shot back, "And I'm angry, so get out of my way!"

"Why, you little infidel!" Nagendra drew back in outrage, raising a fist.

"High priest?" Slythia said calmly, and when the acid green eyes turned to her, she snapped her fan half-shut, flicked it forward in a rotating semi-circle, then opened it before her face once more. The high priest followed the motion, his eyes locking onto a spot above Axis's chest, which weighed heavily where it pressed into him, but he dared not glance down. Then, with a great deal of reluctance, the cobras parted to one side, and Nagendra inclined his head, folding his hood back in and gesturing for them to continue on their way, a poisonous look on his face.

"My apologiesss." He muttered in a voice that didn't sound at all sorry. Axis bared his teeth again, then took off at a brisk pace, stomping and swinging his fists the whole way back to his room, where he bounded into the cold bed, rolled up in the thin blanket, and shut his eyes against the tears, silently drifting off into a dark, dreamless sleep.

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><p>He woke again feeling hollow and hungry, to a room that was completely dark. His stomach let out a loud grumble, and it echoed eeriely in the darkness. His fur stood on end again, and he called out into the darkness.<p>

"Cazarak?"

There came no answer.

"Cazarak?" He tried again, and this time when there came no reply, he slipped out of the bed, feet tingling as they hit the cold floor, and he reached out blindly with his hands, trying to find his way to the door by memory. After a few bumps and stumbles, he managed to find it again, gently prying it open. He stuck his head out into the hallway, looking to the right and seeing nothing but a hallway disappearing into darkness. He looked to the left, and let out a squeak of surprise when he saw a pair of caramel eyes looming out of the darkness, staring at him.

"I was wondering when you were going to wake up." Grune rumbled, rising from the makeshift chair. "You've been asleep for a while now."

"Really?" He asked, scrunching his nose and raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, really." Grune said, crossing his massive arms. "It's almost midnight."

The cub's eyes went wide. "Midnight?" He whispered, exhaling a "Wow!" when his uncle nodded.

"I imagine you're hungry?"

"Uh-huh," He said guiltily, nodding slowly and tucking his chin in against his chest. "Am I in trouble because of earlier?"

The caramel eyes studied him for a long moment, the same way his mother's identical eyes used to study him when he had misbehaved. Grune worked his bearded jaw, sabertooth catching a few winks of the light as he tilted his head.

"No," he answered, "You aren't. Though I cannot say Lord Mumm-Ra is too pleased that his prisoner managed to shield his mind, thanks to him having to throw you out of the room."

Axis looked down quickly, hoping his uncle wouldn't see his relief at the news. So the old cat managed to find a way to protect himself from Mumm-Ra's evil magic! Thankfully, Grune seemed to take his reaction the other way, crouching down to his level and placing both massive hands on his thin shoulders.

"Axis..." He said, his voice concerned and his expression warm and worried, "Are you alright, boy?"

"Mm-hmm." He hummed, nodding again.

"You weren't supposed to see any of that." His uncle said in a low voice, several emotions passing across his scruffy face that Axis couldn't recognize. "So I don't want you telling anyone what you saw."

"I won't tell!" He promised, shaking his head rapidly, and the older sabertooth breathed a ragged sigh of relief.

"Good lad. Now, let's get some food in you, and then you can get back to sleep."

His supper was brief, the food was heavy, and he fell back asleep even deeper than before, a strange sense of comfort enveloping him in his dreams.

The next morning dawned with little difference from the previous one, but Axis noticed that day as his uncle ran him through more training exercises in an attempt to set up a routine, that suddenly the practice sword didn't feel quite as heavy as it did before, and the knotted scar on his right hand barely twinged at all.


	7. Chapter6: Salariss and the Hidden Blades

**A/N: MAN it has been a while since I updated this, huh? I started writing this chapter back in the beginning of December, but I thought that it was lost forever with all of my other writing and data when my laptop decided to die shortly afterward. But thanks to a weird vampire revival the laptop managed to pull off, we got my data recovered and I was able to get this chapter back and I finished it up last night. I'm just so happy I got this chapter back and was able to finish writing it. ^^~Sorry this update took forever, and I apologize if my writing for this seems somewhat off. I'm way out of practice writing in this universe, and writing for a child protagonist. But I can't wait to get back in the swing of it.**

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><p><span>Chapter 6: Salariss and the Hidden Blades<span>

The next day dawned similar to the first two. Grune woke Axis early to eat, then ushered him to the hall to train. Instead of pulling out the practice swords however, his uncle walked him through several stretches in order to limber up, then explained they were going to practice punching drills that morning. Axis made no objections, simply following along dully, wondering what had become of the old cat with the white beard. Was he okay? Was Mumm-Ra still hurting him? The cub wondered desperately if he would get a chance to see the old cat again, if he would find the perfect opportunity to slip away from his uncle and find the old fellow.  
>"Axis, pay attention!" Grune said sharply, startling him, and he focused this time, working through the drill step by step, keeping his eyes on his uncle. Mimicking his motions wasn't difficult, but putting force behind them was. The set of lunging punches required a lot of force in his arms, and he struggled with them, often lunging so far forward he would unbalance himself and stumble. This occurred a good four or five times before Axis let out a small growl and crossed his arms stubbornly.<br>"Why do we have to do this?" He grumbled. "It's dumb and I don't like it."  
>"Now, now, no sulking!" Grune said firmly, stepping out of the stance to correct his nephew's posture. "You're simply not used to it yet. But you'll get it, mark my words. And it isn't dumb, either. You need to know how to fight open-handed as well."<br>"What's 'open-handed' mean?" He asked, shifting his weight as he spread his feet apart.  
>"It means without a weapon," his uncle replied, "And it is necessary. You never know when you might lose your weapon and have to take on an enemy with your bare hands."<br>"Couldn't I just kick them and run?"  
>"We'll get to kicking drills tomorrow," his uncle answered, giving him an amiable pat on the head, "And I'll teach you about strategic retreats in time. But for now, we're punching."<br>The cub let out a frustrated huff, but went back to the routine all the same, working through the drill with less enthusiasm than before. The truth was, he worried about the way his right hand would twinge and jerk sometimes. How could he punch with a bad hand? Kicking sounded like a much better idea. Of course, not being stuck here and learning this stuff, _that_ sounded like the _best_ idea.  
>Not that he could necessarily do that, however.<br>After some time had passed, an hour or perhaps two, after they had returned to sword practice, a buzz ran through the room. Axis looked up from a swing to see the lizards parting, making a wide opening in the middle of the ahead, and they whispered and murmured to one another anxiously. He glanced to the door, puzzled, then froze, his body going cold with fear. Mumm-Ra moved as quickly and silently as he had appeared, and was stalking toward them with a furious spark in his red eyes.  
>"What's wrong, Uncle Grune?" The kitten whispered, only to be waved off curtly.<br>"Keep practicing, Axis."  
>He didn't need to be told twice. He would even start the punching drills again, as long as it meant he didn't have to be around the red nightmare monster too long.<br>"Grune," the rattling, harsh voice cracked through the arena with an air of impatience and authority, one Axis did his best to ignore as he stepped through the motions of the sword stances, "How quickly can you ready a battalion to head to the Cloud Peak mine?"  
>"Quickly enough," he heard his uncle reply, "Though I thought you wanted me to pursue the course laid out for the Book of Omens."<br>"I have another task for you," came the snapping response, "The army's tanks need more Thundrillium if they are to march over the face of Third Earth. Once you have overseen this task, you are to await my orders for your next mission."  
>"And the Book? With or without Jaga, the Thundercats could already be halfway to finding it." A desperate edge had entered his uncle's voice, and something about that grabbed the boy's attention.<br>"For now, I am leaving Slithe in charge of that matter." Mumm-Ra answered coolly.  
>"You would trust <em>Slithe<em> with finding the Book of Omens?!" Grune nearly choked on his words, eyes bulging in his head. The terrifying red gaze of Mumm-Ra, half-lidded and flickering, regarded the massive saber-tooth with an icy resolve and aloofness.  
>"I may not have faith in Slithe's capability," came the quiet response, "But I do trust his <em>motives<em>."  
>Grune recoiled as though he had been slapped in the face, and Axis frowned, more than a little worried by that reaction. But there was something else that tugged at him as well, and he couldn't stop himself from asking the question once it popped into his head.<br>"What's a book of omens?"  
>Two gazes, deep caramel and bloody red, snapped onto him. Axis lowered the practice sword in his hands, staring back and doing his best to stand tall and still. Dread began to creep into his heart, closing its long claws over him with a cold, icy grip. All he did was ask a question. Why did they both look upset?<br>"Axis, I thought I told you to keep practicing."  
>"I <em>am<em> practicing!" He yowled in meek protest, giving the sword a small wave.  
>"Grune," Mumm-Ra's voice took on a strange undercurrent as he regarded the cub curiously, "Does your nephew have any education to speak of?"<br>"Eh?" Grune spluttered, blinking in surprise. "Ahh...Axis. Did your mother ever teach you letters? Writing, reading?"  
>He frowned. Why was that important and why weren't they answering his question? Then again, they were grown-ups, so maybe they weren't ever going to answer. "A little bit," he answered, "I can read some words. And I can write my name. Why?"<br>"Yes, why?" Grune demanded, rounding on Mumm-Ra. The red nightmare glared back up at him indignantly.  
>"You may not place great value in knowledge, Grune," he said icily, "But I do. The boy must learn more than the brute aspects of combat; he must learn the strategic art of warfare itself. I will not tolerate failure from him in the future."<br>These words made the claws of dread close tighter over the kitten, and he swallowed over the lump in his throat.  
>"Once you return from the mine, he is to begin his studies." He continued.<br>"And with what books, _Lord_ Mumm-Ra?" Grune challenged, mocking and childish.  
>"The ones in my room of archives," he replied with equal smugness, "I daresay even <em>you<em> could benefit from studying everything the pyramid's archives hold on battle strategy and various warfare."  
>At this point, Axis resorted to tuning out the conversation. Becoming a powerful warrior like his uncle kept saying was turning out to be a lot more work than he'd thought. But then, a lot of the grown-ups he'd known back home had always worked hard every day, especially his mother. Would she have liked what he was doing? He wasn't sure, until he remembered something else very important. His father had been a brave warrior for the king of Thundera.<br>His hand gave a sharp twinge, but he shook it off. The thought was somehow comforting and encouraging all at once, and as he took a few more half-hearted swings with the sword, something moved in the corner of his vision. He glanced over, eyes falling on the gauntlet, in motion as always, and he pondered. His father could have beaten it, he was sure; his father had been a warrior who had fought many battles and died a hero. Something like the training contraption would have been easy exercise for him. Axis's eyes studied the swinging sandbags a moment before he dropped the practice sword and dashed up to the starting platform.  
><em>I'm probably not gonna get any further than last time,<em> he thought, swallowing hard, _But I've gotta try anyway!  
><em>Taking a deep breath and bouncing on the balls of his toes, the saber-tooth cub readied himself and darted forward. He barely brushed the first sandbag as he ran past it, and the second swung wide of him as he moved. For a fleeting, exhilarating moment, he thought he had done something right, that he'd gotten it.  
>Then the third sandbag slammed into him, shoving him off the gauntlet unceremoniously.<br>He hit the ground with less force this time and went rolling, the turf scraping his upper arms. He let out a small hiss of pain, blinking back tears as his arms burned. Vague awareness of a dull throb in his right hand hit him as he shook his head and cleared his vision. A low buzz filled his ears as the lizards whispered and pointed at him, and dull thuds punctuated their murmuring. A huge shadow fell across his face, and looking up, he found his uncle frowning and shaking his head.  
>"Axis, I've told you," Grune sighed in exasperation, "You can't run the gauntlet. You're not ready, and you certainly aren't big enough."<br>"I still wanna try..." he mumbled.  
>"Those blades would mince you in a blink, boy! You should be happy you've only been caught by the sandbag both times." Came the irritated huff. "Come on, get up! We need to make ready; we have some marching to do. Where's that servant of yours, the one with that eyesore of a red crest on his head...?"<br>"Cazarak?" Axis asked as he got to his feet. "Is he in trouble?"  
>"No," Grune answered, gesturing for the cub to follow, "You're coming along to the Cloud Peak mine, but I'll be busy most of the time, so you need someone to look after you."<br>"We get to go on a trip?" He asked, breaking into a grin.  
>"Yes, yes," Grune muttered, walking him to the doors, "Now, go fetch the servant, we'll be leaving shortly."<br>"You shouldn't call him that," Axis said, frowning up at him, "He has a name, y'know."  
>Grune rolled his eyes and waved him off, and the cub sprinted through the halls all the way back to his room, despite the stinging the rush of air brought to his scraps. And even though it was annoying his uncle wouldn't use Cazarak's name, it was exciting to know they were going to some place new. They would have to come back to the pyramid before long, but even being away for a couple of days was so exciting he could hardly hold it in. He missed the fresh air and the sun and the weather, and he could hardly wait to get outside and run and play. He reached his room in a matter of moments, but Cazarak was nowhere in sight. A quick glance back out in the hall revealed nothing, so the kitten resolved to wait in his room until his friend came back. He spent the first few minutes sitting on the end of his bed, kicking his legs rapidly as he waited. But before too long, his excitement proved to be too much to hold in, and he let out a yell of excitement, running around the room as fast as he could. And he was in the middle of a decently long streak of jumping up and down on his bed when Cazarak finally walked into the room.<br>"Axis?" He exclaimed in surprise, flinching as though he'd been half-asleep.  
>"Cazarak!" The cub yelled at the height of a bounce, flailing and pinwheeling his arms as his face broke into a wide grin. "Guess what! We're going! On a trip!"<br>"A trip? Axis, settle down a moment! What in the name of Third Earth are you talking about?" The lizard asked, sidling to the edge of the bed and hovering in place, as though waiting to snatch the kitten from the air in mid-bounce.  
>"Mumm-Ra's sending Uncle Grune to some place called the Cloud Peak Mine, and we're going too!" He explained breathlessly as he slowed down and hopped off the bed, suddenly rather dizzy.<br>"Cloud Peak Mine?" Cazarak repeated in disbelief before catching a glimpse of the scrapes. "Axis! What happened to you?"  
>"I..." The cub flinched, rubbing one of his arms and looking at the floor, feeling quite ashamed. "I tried running on the gauntlet again."<br>The lizard groaned, running a scaled hand over his bright red crest in exasperation. "Oh, Axis! I admire your determination, but please don't do this! You keep hurting yourself!" He pleaded. "Come now, let's get those scrapes cleaned so they can scab over and heal."  
>"Not yet!" He protested, evading the lizard's grasp. "Uncle Grune said we have to get ready <em>now<em>, because we're leaving _soon_."  
>Cazarak fixed him with a scrutinizing amber stare, eyes narrowing in suspicion, but said nothing. In fact, he barely spoke a word until the battalion set out from the pyramid, when he finally had his opportunity to treat the cub's scrapes, much to Axis's rather vocal dismay.<br>"_Oowww_! That _stings_, Cazarak!" He yowled, jerking his arm away from the soaked, foul-smelling rag.  
>"We have to prevent it from getting infected." The lizard said gently, taking the cub's hand to hold his arm level, pressing the rag to it again. "I <em>know<em> it stings, but a little pain right now is better than a fever or stomachache later."  
>Axis let out a small hiss of pain, blue eyes flicking suspiciously at the lizard. "How can I get a <em>stomachache <em>from a _scrape_?" He demanded. He let out an indignant grumble when he didn't get an answer, but his grouchiness dissipated as the battalion and the accompanying mechs marched farther away from the pyramid. Finally, he was outside again, and getting away from that dreadful place! Four lizard warriors quickly took up positions in front of, behind, and to the sides of Axis and Cazarak, ushering the two closer to the front, just behind Grune. The kitten knew better than to protest, and simply kept quiet, allowing Cazarak to tend to him and waiting for something to happen as they marched.  
>The endless expanse of sand fell away to jagged, rocky outcroppings of shale and clay within the first half hour, and Grune remarked loudly to a few questioning voices that he knew where he was going. The sand underfoot became thin, barely concealing the fragile, half-broken shelves of shale. Axis kept his eyes on the ground, taking care to step gingerly to avoid cutting his feet on any jagged, broken edges.<br>"Uncle Grune, where are we?" He asked after nearly losing his balance on a particularly smooth stretch of sun-blasted clay. His uncle glanced over his shoulder at him, the expression in his caramel eyes brightening.  
>"These are the Demon's Shelves, Axis," Grune explained, his tone both jolly and wistful, "And while they may not be the easiest thing to cross, this is the path I took when I first heard Mumm-Ra's call. And believe me, boy, it's a lot faster to traverse the Shelves and cut through to the forest than to go across the Sand Sea."<br>Some of the lizards in the battalion started to groan and mutter at this last statement; something told the cub they didn't quite agree with the bigger sabertooth. Looking at the giant mechs, he could understand why; they were moving slower today than normal, probably because it was harder for them to move across the Shelves. His uncle had a strange idea of the word "shortcut."  
>As Axis was taking all this in and considering it, he caught something out of the corner of his eye, moving in the distance. Before he could get a better look, it winked out of sight behind a jagged outcropping of clay, and he seized Cazarak's arm.<br>"Did you see that?" He whispered.  
>"See what, Axis?"<br>"That thing that moved!" He insisted, pointing out the spot where he had seen it. "It was just there, by that rock! I saw it move, but it's gone now."  
>The scarlet crest on Cazarak's head rose sharply, instantly alert despite his attempt to shush the kitten.<br>"Don't worry," he murmured, "I'm sure it was nothing."  
>Axis scowled in silent annoyance; he knew he had seen something behind the outcropping. And with the way the fur on the back of his neck prickled, he had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time he saw it either...<p>

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><p>They set up camp early in the evening, while the sky was still a dark blue, and Axis had a tent to himself, with only Cazarak and his uncle darting in and out of there all the time. And even then, only Cazarak really seemed to stay with him; Grune was too busy elsewhere, shouting orders to the soldiers and checking up on things.<br>Axis was left to his own devices, and he used the time to work on practicing his drills with his practice sword. Doing the same motions over and over was starting to get rather boring, but he had little else to do, and besides...his uncle could get mad at him if he didn't work on the sword drills the way he was supposed to.  
>"Axis?" Cazarak asked at one point, snapping him out of the repetitive drills. "You could eat your supper now if you like. You don't have to keep practicing."<br>He set the wooden sword down with a heavy sigh of relief and shook his arms a little.  
>"Thanks, Cazarak." He murmured, coming over to sit on a crate that had been turned up. "My arms were starting to go numb! I hate these stupid drills."<br>The lizard said nothing, but pushed a small plate of the food toward the cub.  
>"Eat." He insisted. "You're going to need your strength if your uncle insists on dragging us all over Third Earth."<br>"But what about you?" Axis asked, arching his eyebrows. "Where's your food?"  
>The lizard's mouth twisted bitterly. "I'm lucky if I get meals, Axis. No, I won't be eating anything tonight." He answered, his voice quiet.<br>"But you need your strength too!"  
>"Axis, I am a slave. My life means nothing to the other lizards, or to your uncle, or even to Mumm-Ra. I am only alive still because I am useful." Cazarak said gently, his yellow eyes sad. The kitten set down the small roll of bread in angry shock.<br>"That isn't right." He said with a small snarl. "It's not fair."  
>"Life never is, my young friend. Life never is."<br>Axis stared at him for a long moment, feeling anger prickle in his entire body. How could anybody not care about Cazarak? They cared about _him_, didn't they? Why was the lizard any different? He was a person too! Angry and indignant, he snatched the roll of bread and tore it in half. Before Cazarak could do more than blink in surprise, he set the bread down and began to tear at the ripe piece of fruit as well.  
>"Axis, what are you doing?"<br>"We both need to be strong, Cazarak! That means you've gotta eat, too!"  
>"Axis..." He sighed, lowering his head, his scarlet crest wilting a little. Axis continued to tear at the food, trying his best to separate everything into even halves, and was barely paying attention to the lizard when he suddenly looked up, eyes going wide. He noticed after a moment however, and glanced up, confused.<br>"Cazarak? What is it?" He asked.  
>"I'm not sure." The lizard whispered, getting to his feet slowly, looking around uncertainly. The young sabertooth cat looked around the tent, confused. Nothing seemed wrong. But then he heard faint sounds coming from outside, and frowned. Was someone approaching the tent?<br>Without warning, Cazarak abruptly grabbed him and clapped a long, scaly hand over his mouth. Axis wriggled slightly in protest before he was hissed at to be quiet. The lizard darted toward the back of the tent and set him down behind a large barrel, draping a tarp over him and whispering a command to stay where he was. He blinked as his vision was obscured, then slowly started pulling the tarp a little, until he could just peak at the world outside.  
>And it was about that moment that a group of lizards exploded into the tent, surrounding Cazarak and pointing all manner of sharp weapons at him.<br>Axis nearly gave a jump and squeak of fear, but he bit his lower lip and stayed quiet. After all, they were lizards, right? They wouldn't hurt another lizard, would they? He shifted slightly to get a better view. They were indeed lizards, but they were dressed like bandits, with long, sharp spikes rising out of their cloth armor, and their tales were covered in sand-yellow scales, very different from all of the green and brown lizards he was used to seeing.  
>"Where is it?" One of them spoke, lowering the cloth that covered her face. "Tell us, and we will let you live."<br>"I am not sure I understand." Cazarak answered slowly, raising his hands to show he had nothing in them, arching a brow. "Where is what?"  
>"We have heard tell that the sabertooth general of the Deathless One's army has kept his treasure here, apart from the rest of the camp." Another lizard answered, tightening her grip on a long, stick-like weapon with a sharp blade at the end of it. "We are here to destroy it."<br>Cazarak's yellow eyes went wide, and Axis had to fight himself to stay still. Treasure? Uncle Grune had _treasure_? Where was it, and why hadn't he seen it yet?  
>"Destroy treasure?" Cazarak asked. "What purpose would that serve?"<br>"It shall emotionally cripple the general." Replied one of the strange lizards. "You reacted when we mentioned it. You know where it is. Tell us now!"  
>"Yeah, tell them, Cazarak!" Axis piped up, flailing free of the tarp before he could stop himself. "I wanna see Uncle Grune's treasure too!"<br>There was a pause as all the lizards turned and looked at him with wide eyes, and Cazarak looked both frightened and angry. As Axis stared and watched them, he realized something very odd, very odd indeed. If he wasn't wrong, then _all_ of these strange bandit lizards…were _girls_. As he looked around at them, Cazarak swiftly moved to cover him, placing his arms around the kitten protectively.  
>"Cazarak?" He asked curiously.<br>"Sisters," the one who had spoken first said, tilting her head to each side, though her eyes never left the young sabertooth and his guardian, "Perhaps we misjudged our information. We were told there was a treasure, but we never stopped to consider the treasure would be anything but wealth, plundered and ill-gained, under the Deathless One's orders. Truly, the definition of treasure is also broad and up to be interpreted as any other race could see fit."  
>Axis crinkled his nose and looked to Cazarak, whose yellow eyes were darting from each of the strange lizard women to the next. "What are they talking about, huh?" He murmured quietly to his friend, whose scarlet crest flared upon his head angrily.<br>"You will not touch this cub, whoever you are." He hissed, displaying his sharp teeth in a way that made Axis somewhat uneasy. "Spirits grant me peace, I do not care if you kill me thrice over! You will _not_ harm this boy!"  
>A chill ran down the young cat's spine. He didn't like the way his friend was talking at all, and he didn't like the way those bandit-warriors were looking at them. They weren't friendly at all, and they wouldn't put away their weapons either. He had wondered if he should scream for his uncle, but what would happen then? Would these lizards kill them both and then run away? Or would his uncle get to them in time?<br>Before he could make a decision though, the leader of the horned lizards shouldered one of her curved swords and an easy smile spread over her amber, scaly face. A second later, she sheathed the twin to her first sword and inclined her head to Cazarak.  
>"You are noble," she said, "To defend a child that is not your own, and with no weapons save your own ferocity and courage."<br>"Of course he's brave!" Axis yowled at her, scowling. "And I won't let you hurt him either!"  
>Suddenly all the lizard women started giggling silently, as though he'd said something funny, and he pouted at them. So what if he was small? He was still a sabertooth warrior in training! They wouldn't be laughing if he was their size and had a real sword to protect Cazarak with!<br>"And the boy is brave too!" One of them remarked, using her glaive to support her weight, she was laughing so had. To her, their leader nodded, and then saluted with her sword, bringing the edge of the blade up to the front of her face. It made it look like her face was cut in half, Axis thought.  
>"Well-met, brothers." She said. "I am Salariss, First Spear of the Hidden Blades. You are Cazarak, correct? And how are you called, child of Grune?"<br>"I'm Axis," he answered somewhat sullenly, "And Grune is my uncle."  
>The horned lizards all raised their brows in surprise and began to murmur to one another in a strange language that sounded like rolling song, reminding the young cat of lullabies and moonlight. It was strange, but there was something comforting about it, and he relaxed, positive these strangers no longer meant them harm.<br>"If you wouldn't mind!" Cazarak snapped, and the bandit-warriors fell silent. Sheathing her other sword, Salariss approached him, and her light blue eyes jumped between him and Axis several times as she watched them in silence.  
>"You wear seals of bondage, Crest-of-the-High-Sun." She said, giving the top of his head a glance before nodding down at the silver bands on the green lizard's arms. "Do you not loathe this? Do you not loathe this child you must watch at all?"<br>"No," he answered sharply, and Axis started to lose track of what was going on, feeling rather confused, "I meant what I said when I claimed I shall defend him with my life. He is not a chest of treasure to be hauled off in a path of bloodshed. It was never his choice to be forced into Mumm-Ra's service, and there is nothing I would like better than to leave here with him."  
>Axis's heart leaped happily at the thought that Cazarak wanted to help him get out of there one day and away from that red nightmare monster, and even as his hand gave a painful twinge and started throbbing sorely, he suddenly felt incredibly special as fierce loyalty to the lizard grew in his heart. He glanced up at Salariss, whose face was marked with surprise. A moment later, she smiled again and inclined her head.<br>"I respect your strength, brother." She said, raising two claws and pointing them directly at Cazarak's chest, before pointing them back to herself. "And I respect your heart's open honesty."  
>And with that, she spun on her spiky heels and clicked her tongue at the other lizards, who swiftly began to vanish through the opening of the tent. For a moment, Axis and Cazarak stared, stunned.<br>"Where are you going?" Axis asked, and Salariss paused, glancing over her shoulder.  
>"We shall leave you in peace for now," she answered, before her eyes flicked to Cazarak, "But one day I shall help you both escape these unjust bounds. I swear it, by my steel and blood and honor."<br>Then to their great combined surprise, she tossed Axis a wink and blew Cazarak a kiss, before slipping through the tent flap herself. Gawking, the cub and his lizard attendant rushed to the entrance and poked their heads out, looking around wildly. The Hidden Blades were nowhere to be seen, though Axis thought he caught a glimpse of a sandy-colored tail disappearing over a ridge not too far away. Slowly, they went back inside the tent, seating themselves where Axis had torn all of his food in half.  
>"That was kind of weird and scary." Axis murmured. "I've never seen lizards like them before. And they were all girls, and they were <em>still<em> scarier than any of the lizards in the army with us."  
>Cazarak just sorted of nodded quietly, and Axis watched him.<br>"Why did Salariss blow you a kiss, anyway, huh?"  
>The lizard's face flushed green-black and his eyes widened as he stared at the kitten, like he was just noticing Axis for the first time.<br>"Axis, we cannot tell anyone what happened just now!" He whispered. "Not anyone, do you understand me?"  
>The young cat nodded, then asked, "Why?"<br>"Just trust me, alright? Promise me you won't tell anyone about those lizards or anything they said or anything that happened? Can you promise me that?"  
>Axis stared at him for a long moment, then shoved some of the food at his friend.<br>"Only if you promise me you're gonna eat something when I share."  
>Cazarak blinked in surprise, then shook his head and started chuckling quietly, but all the same, he finally took some of the offered food and began eating. Axis grinned.<p> 


End file.
